The Clydesdales
by sylver rain
Summary: mutants turned into horses!! just read the theme for a longer summary... Chpt 18's here!
1. Theme

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The Clydesdales

Theme:

Horses with special mutations start to appear from no where all around the world, and as time passes, more have been turning up. These horses have been dubbed the name Clydesdales, and humans either kept the mystical creatures as a possession or let them off into the wild if they were too dangerous to be among people. However, it turned out that these Clydesdales were originally mutants, turned into horses by an evil sorcerer named Kar. As mutants found out about this, one of them sets out to find the few mutant-turned-horses in order to change them back into their original form, braving dangers and overcoming obstacles as he fought to make things right.

Starring: Remy Le Beau (Gambit)

A/N: An AU story where the X-men evo story line doesn't exist. So if some of the characters don't know each other or something, it's all part of the plan!! ^__^ If anyone dies in this fic, it prolly wouldn't be any of the X-men evo characters…

The story takes place in a very 'fantasy' sort of world, where different places have different environments. But the discrimination against mutants is still there. 

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: X-men evolution belongs to Marvel and WB. I'm merely… _using _the characters….

If you find that the story line or other parts of the fic seem copied, it wasn't, cuz I wrote this out of my own head without reference to any other fic.

-- sylver_rain 


	2. Starting From Scratch

A/N: Yepz, my first fic!! ^__^ Hope it's up to ur liking and pleeze enjoy!! It's gonna be a series kinda thing, so yer… Plz review, kaez?? And tell me how u like it… (or hate it.. -.-)

Disclaimer's on the theme page… 

-- sylver_rain 

The Clydesdales

Chapter 1: Starting From Scratch

"Have you heard about the Clydesdale they have just found?" 

Remy's ears pricked up at the sound of the word 'Clydesdale'. He spied the large, fat lady at the counter and listened intensively at anything else there was to say.

"Nope. What about it?" The man she was talking to asked curiously. The woman relied, "Well, I heard that it was from hell or something." "Really?" "Yep." "What else? Did they say which town they brought it to? What they did to it?" The woman shook her head and said, "No. Not another word. That was all I heard from Sherrie. Clydesdales are damn rare, honey."

Remy frowned. The man at the counter had just asked the woman every question he had wanted to ask, and yet no one actually knew the answers. Somehow, news of Clydesdales spread like wildfire, and the entire world was on a Clydesdale-craze. 

A Clydesdale was a horse, but not just any ordinary horse. It was a mutation. It was a horse with a gift or unnatural talent, just like a human mutant. Remy gritted his teeth and took a swig of his beer. It was unfair that the humans were all out for the mutant Clydesdales, but when it came to humans with mutations, they thought of them as sorcerers and witches. Remy sighed and controlled himself from blowing up the beer mug held tightly in his grip. He got up, brushed his coat down and headed toward the door. 

He stepped out of the inn and into the cool night air. The first time he heard of the Clydesdales, he had been shocked that not only humans, but animals were also mutating. But he found out from another mutant named Xavier that the Clydesdales were not horse mutations, but were actually mutants turned into horses by the infamous, but evil and sly wizard named Kar. 

Remy had tried to find the wizard but the sorcerer was powerful, and was difficult to find. Xavier told him that he would look for a mutant that could either reverse the spell, or turn the Clydesdales back into their human form. He had thanked the older mutant and said that he would do his best to find all the Clydesdales he could and bring them to the mind-probing mutant. Hence he started his adventure, but he hadn't expected things to be this hard. 

The Clydesdales had only started emerging four weeks ago, and there were only two so far in the entire world. Three, including the one he heard had just emerged, and he had only been searching for a week now. But it did make things easier that the Clydesdales were found only in a few kingdoms and towns, but still he had to search for weeks and maybe even months if he had to find them. Finding two mutant horses in several large kingdoms, towns and villages wasn't exactly and easy task for one man, and travelling just made things harder. 

He sighed softly. It was like looking for two needles in a haystack. What's more, he had no idea as to who they were and what their powers were like. Xavier had told him that he'd try to find out, and would give him the information as soon as possible.

Remy LeBeau had wondered how the mutants had gotten themselves turned into Clydesdales in the first place. He hoped that the Clydesdales were distinguishable from other horses, and he had also wondered how they were being treated by humans. Like ordinary horses? Mystical creatures? Or monsters? He shook his head. He couldn't afford to waste any time, and Kar was turning mutants into horses by the week. Remy needed more information, and it was plain exhausting to start from scratch. 

He then decided to try and find the woman named Shirrie, who seemed to be this town's gossip queen. He walked into every inn he saw, asked about her and finally came to and inn where the man at the counter pointed toward a round, fat lady who was talking to a group of women, no doubt sharing the latest news. 

As Remy walked up to her, she was telling her friends about the newest Clydesdale. "What about it?" Remy asked, stopping at the table. 

The fat lady looked up at him and smiled a toothy grin. "Hi, youngn'. New in town are ya?" Remy nodded and asked again, "What about dis Clydesdale?" Shirrie shook with laughter and said, "Why, another Clydesdale poacher? Well, I'll be…" 

Remy winced a little, "Clydesdale Poacher? No, Remy ain't dat. Please, would you tell Remy what dey do?" 

"Why, young man, Clydesdale Poachers are them hunters that catch Clydesdales. But dontcha worry, boy. They don't hurt them creatures or anything. They just catch em and sell em. And for a whole lotta money, I'm tellin' ya." 

Remy nodded slowly and said, "So, tell Remy about dis new Clydesdale…" Shirrie smiled the toothy smile again and said, "Why, all I heard was that it came from hell or something." 

"Where is it?" Remy questioned. Shirrie looked at him with a raised brow. "I'm sorry, boy, but I don't know. I didn't bother to find out cuz no one in this little town will wanna know. We aren't rich enough to afford one." 

Remy's face fell and he said softly, "Ok… Merci anyways." He turned to leave when Shirrie called out, "Well, ya can always try asking Bonny, the mailman. He's the one who tells me the news about them Clydesdales. He comes here every morning at 7." Remy turned, gave a grateful wave and walked off to his inn where he was staying the night. 

He pulled out a map and crossed the town off. "This town is cleared…" he muttered to himself. "Bonny… de mailman… Gambit should have a talk wit dis mailman…"

He got himself up at 6:30 that morning and went down just in time to see the mailman at the mayor's office dropping off some letters for the townsfolk. 

"Hi." Remy said to the mailman, leaning on the mailbox. "Mornin' youngin'. The mailman seemed to be about 60 years old, small and skinny with a thick bushy white beard and a mailman's cap covering his baldhead. He wore a white shirt that had gone pale from the dusty trip, and he was taking letters out from a brown bag hanging from a musty beige horse. 

"Your name Bonny?" Remy asked. "Yea, howja know?" Bonny replied as he continued working through the mailbag, pulling out letters that were addressed to the town. "A femme named Shirrie said so." The mailman laughed and started slipping letters into the mailbox. "Oh, that chatterbox?" Remy nodded and said, "She say Remy can talk to you about Clydesdales." 

At this, the old man stopped and looked up at the tall teenager. Remy kept his hands in his coat's pocket and continued leaning against the letter box. Bonny nodded and said, "So what do you want to know?"

Remy was hoping desperately that this old man could give him a lead. "You said something about a demon Clydesdale to Shirrie. Remy wanna know where it is." Bonny shook the dust off his cap and said, "Well, I heard about that one in Cleedersville. Said it looked like some kinda demon from hell." Remy thanked the man. _Cleedersville… Seems like dat is where Gambit have to start._

End of chapter 1


	3. The Clydesdale From Hell

A/N: Ookiez.. second chptr!! Hope u enjoy it, and thanx sooo much for the reviews!! 

Chrissie: Haven't watched the show… but I've read the book!! And it's fantastic!!

Disclaimer's on theme page..

-- sylver_rain

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The Clydesdales

Chapter 2: The Clydesdale From Hell

Remy was exhausted from the long dusty trip. He had been travelling in the carriage for a whole 24 hours from Monto to Cleedersville. And the ride had been hot and sweaty and extremely boring. But travelling over the Texan-like desert and seeing nothing but cactuses and tumble-wheat seemed to make people feel that way. 

He had fallen asleep in the carriage and woken up to a new and totally different landscape. There were forests and small rivers around, and the temperature was nice and cooling. 

He stepped off the carriage into a crowded town where people were bustling about their own business. The town was one of the bigger and more major towns, and it was full of different mediterranean houses and accommodations, with huge houses, obviously belonging to the rich, and small ones, belonging to the less fortunate. But over all, he couldn't see any poor people or beggars, so he presumed it was a pretty wealthy area of the Milestone Kingdom, as medieval as it was.

He booked a room at an inn and started his search for the 'demon' Clydesdale. Walking around, he looked for a big crowd of some sort. He walked by a wall when he caught sight of a single colorful poster on it out of the corner or his eye. He walked toward it, and after reading, decided that the day wasn't all that bad. It read **Circus: Featuring the Demon Clydesdale, Nightcrawler. Sure to Scare You to Hell.**

He read the details of where the circus was going to be held and at what time. _Nightcrawler, huh?_ It was to start at 7 that night, and it was only 2:30 in the afternoon at that moment. He thought it'd be best to go there and snag the Clydesdale before the freak show started. 

He roamed the town and got to the circus by 3. There, he strolled around the circus grounds like he was meant to be there and looked for any type of demonic looking horse. After a while of futile searching, he was starting to get tired and decided to swipe a drink from any stall and sit down under a shady tree not far from the circus tents. Then it came. 

A long row of connected cages were pulled in by a carriage, and then elephants started lumbering in one by one behind it. Remy kept a close watch for any sign of the Clydesdale, and only managed to catch sight of a cage rumbling along with all the others, only that a large dirty cloth was draped over it. 

He kept an eye on it as the cages were disconnected one by one and each pushed into certain places. The clothed cage was placed right in the middle of the entire circus area, as if protected by the wide radius of circus tents around it. No doubt it contained the Clydesdale he was looking for. 

He tossed the wooden cup he had been drinking from behind him and made his way down. However, circus people were already milling around inside and when he neared the cage, a man stopped him and said, "Uh uh… no peeking. You'd have to wait till the show starts if you wanna see the Clydesdale. And you definitely have to pay!" Remy smiled and walked off. _Went a lot better dan I thought…_ He thought to himself. He had half expected the man to start yelling at him and calling out a pack of lions and clowns to attack him. 

But Remy really wanted to get the Clydesdale named Nightcrawler out as soon as he possibly could. He pretended to walk out of the area and after the man left, he circled around a tent and walked back to the cage. 

Thankfully, the circus people were either busily setting up the large circus tent or getting themselves ready. He pulled the sheets up a little to look at what people had said to be a horse from hell. He gasped a little from a small shock at what was inside.

Although the entire cage was dark due to being shut off from light, the dim bit of sunlight that managed to shine through the dirty sheet of cloth revealed a dark figure that looked almost black. The creature was, however, unconscious and all he could see was a mass of darkness. 

He tightened his grip on the cage bars and was about to discharge kinetic energy into it when he heard the same man coming. He ran off, cursing at the same time, and disappeared before the man had a chance to see him. 

The circus ground was getting crowded by the second, and Remy knew that he had blown the chance to get the Clydesdale. The only chance he had left of rescuing it was that night at the circus. He had no idea how he was going to do it, but he had to somehow. Or another option was waiting for the next day where the circus would pack up and leave. He decided on the former.

Remy had finished his stolen lunch and felt well replenished and ready for whatever he would face that day. The circus was about to start any minute and he made his way down to the enormous circus tent. He had wanted to wait a little later for when it became crowded but saw no need to it. 

Almost the entire town was there, with a large crowd trying to cram itself into the circus tent. The circus manager was trying to keep things in order, and was collecting bundles of money at the same time. It seemed that everyone was eager to see a Clydesdale, even more so the Clydesdale from Hell, as many people were calling it. Remy felt it was too easy, squeezing his way through the crowd and getting in without any trouble or paying. He ignored a group of girls who were swooning at him and he stood at the corner at one of the entrances. 

After a while, the people quickly settled down, all eager to see the Clydesdale. The lamps were dimmed and the large ring in the middle of the circus lighted up. 

The ringmaster announced loudly, "Ladies and Gentlemen. Tonight, is the biggest night in all of our circus history, where you get to witness a real live Clydesdale." The crowd cheered wildly, then settled down again to listen to the tall skinny ringmaster, "Please enjoy the show." 

The large ring suddenly burst into flames, sending the crowd wild, and circus performers poured out from different openings. The people cheered and whistled. Circuses were rare and were usually performed for special occasions, and so many people had attended to add some excitement into their otherwise boring lives. Elephants lumbered out, holding on to the elephant in front of each of them by the tail and walking in a line. Clowns hopped about, pulling funny faces and making the people laugh. However, the people were more eager for a look at the Clydesdale. They started chanting "CLYDESDALE! CLYDESDALE! CLYDESDALE!" 

Remy watched closely as the ringmaster gave in to the cheers and finally called out, "Presenting, Ladies and Gentlemen, the star of tonight which you have been all dying to see! The Clydesdale from Hell, Nightcrawler!" The crowd grew quiet as suspense filled the air. It was so silent that every single person in the arena could hear the cloth getting yanked off the cage, revealing the creature. Everyone gasped. 

A dark blue stallion staggered to stand up, waking up from his long sleep of unconsciousness. He looked up and the people gasped again. He had a rich navy blue mane, the same as his body, and his eyes were a gleaming yellow that reflected any bit of light that glowed in the circus arena. His hooves were split, like a bull's hoof, and they were black in color. And the most remarkable and noticeable feature he had was that instead of a tail full of hair, he had a long demon-like tail. At the end of the tail was a flat spade that looked a lot like the spade from a card deck. Well, at least that was what Remy was thinking of when he saw the tail. 

The Clydesdale's tail swung around in anticipation and Remy could actually see a look of panic cross the creature's eyes. The keeper in charge of Nightcrawler opened the cage, and swung a lasso, then looped it around the Demon Clydesdale's neck. He panicked, and starting neighing shrilly in fear and kicking around but to no avail. The crowd only scared him more by cheering wildly. "DEMON! DEMON! DEMON!" The crowd was chanting. Some of the people looked terrified of seeing a demon-like Clydesdale, and others just wanted to see it do circus tricks. Remy's eyes began to turn a dark shade or crimson and he was about to make his way to the cage when a sudden 'Bamf' was heard and the neighing stopped. 

The entire arena was left in silence, and the crowd stared at the cage with disbelief and opened mouths. The Clydesdale was gone, leaving a very confused keeper with a very empty lasso. All that was left was the smell of sulfur and brimstone. The crowd could hardly believe what their eyes had just seen. The people would have thought it was part of the show but the confused look on the ringmaster's face just gave the whole thing away.

Remy sighed. Great. He was dealing with a mutated horse that was in shock and panic and its mutant ability, of all things, was the power of teleportation. Just great. Now, he had practically no chance of finding the Blue Clydesdale. He was the only one who stood up and left the tent, while all the other people either sat there with mouth hanging wide open or were trying to ask the ring master for their money back. 

Remy was getting tired. He thought about the Clydesdale. Nightcrawler was the first Clydesdale he had seen, and he was a lot more spectacular than Remy had expected. But then he had seen the panicked expression on the creature's face when the crowd chanted at him, calling him a demon. He looked horrified, angry, yet sad at the same time. Remy couldn't get his mind of Nightcrawler, and wondered if he would see him again.

End of chapter 2


	4. A New Lead

A/N: Riteoz, chpt 3 is up!! Nightcrawler fans, fear not… he will be back… In fact, there will be appearances of most of the X-men evo characters.. so yerz.. enjoy, enjoy!! And review plz!! And a big THANX to all those who did!! *I'm so happy!!*

Like I've said b4, the disclaimer's on the theme page, kaez??

-- sylver_rain

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The Clydesdales

Chapter 3: A New Lead

Remy had to start on a fresh track, again. He knew that Nightcrawler would be difficult to find, considering the fact that the Clydesdale could be anywhere in the world. Now he was starting from scratch, with no knowledge as to where the next Clydesdale was, what powers it had and moreover how it looked like. 

He wandered the streets, walking into bars and inns, hoping to hear as much as he could about a Clydesdale. However, the only talk of the town was about Nightcrawler's disappearance. 

Remy settled down in a bar and bought a beer using whatever money he had left from pick pocketing. Remy decided that if he couldn't eavesdrop on conversations of Clydesdales, he might as well start one. He looked up at the large, stout bartender who was smoking a tobacco and wiping the counter. "Excuse me, mon ami. Would you happen to know where else a man can find another Clydesdale besides de demon one?" The bartender looked up and simply said, "The Capital." Remy frowned. The Capital of Milestone Kingdom? "Oh… merci." He mumbled before finishing off his mug of beer and making his way out. _Fantastic_ He thought to himself. 

It was already depressing enough that he had lost a Clydesdale, but now that he got the chance to find another, it happened to be in a city where he was the most well known thief of all time. 

Remy had lived most of his life in Milestone Capital in a thieves guild. He was brought up learning the ways of a criminal and he had grown to be the famous 'Prince of Thieves' in Milestone Capital. He had been a menace to society and he had left the city to escape the police, who were out for his blood. To make a grand appearance now would almost be suicidal. 

But it's not like he had a choice. He made his way down to the train station. The train station stuck out like a sore thumb in comparison to everything else in the town, for while the town looked like a scene from medieval times, the train station looked like it came out from the future. 

The entire place was made of metal, and everything seemed to be electronic. Banks, shops and food stalls were everywhere, and people were bustling around their own business. The people walking around in medieval clothing created quite a contrast to the futuristic surroundings. 

Remy had to swipe a few tickets before getting one that was going to Milestone Capital, and he didn't have to wait long for the train to come roaring down and screeching to a stop. 

The bullet train was of a dark colored metal, with orange tinted windows. When it finally stopped, a hiss could be heard as air escaped from the train's sliding doors. Remy boarded the train and prepared for a very fast ride. 

Looking out the train, Remy watched as a meadow of some sort passed by, and all he could see was green grass with dots of yellow, probably buttercups or something, with snowcapped mountains in the background. Then the entire landscape seemed to change when the green meadows turned into dark, greenish blue waters. The train was going over an ocean. The Kydonaise Ocean, to be exact. Yes, as unbelievable as it seemed, tracks had been built over the ocean with the help of the high technology Milestone Capital had. 

The train finished crossing the long journey on a thin track over the sea, and finally arrived at a train station similar to the one at Cleedersville. When he got off, he kept in the shadows most of the time, and often made his way around through deserted places.

He surveyed the area as he walked around. The place had changed a lot since the last time he was here… about 5 years ago? Now, everything had been upgraded in technology, and the surroundings were extremely futuristic, with great metal highways and towering skyscrapers. But the roads and passages hadn't changed much, and he was all too familiar with the area. 

He remembered knowing the entire place like the back of his hand, and he knew countless shortcuts and small alleyways he used to escape policemen. Most of the passages were still there, and this comforted him a little, knowing that if he ever was recognized by a policeman, he may still have the possibility of escaping. 

So far, no one had recognized him yet, and he walked around, hoping to hear or see anything that had something to do with a Clydesdale.

It had made sense that a caught Clydesdale would probably be sent here, Milestone Capital being the wealthiest and most famous trading city. In fact, if he needed to know all he needed to know about the latest Clydesdales, Milestone Capital was the best place to find out. It was after all, the core center of half the world. The chief city of the other half was somewhere on the other side of the earth, called Megalopolis, and was most similar to this capital. 

As he passed by a magazine store, he managed to snag a news-com copy. A news-com was a mechanical device in the form of a slide with weekly news editions stored in it. His eyes widened as he read the big bold headlines, **Fastest Animal Alive, The Speed Clydesdale – Quicksilver. **He tapped a button on the touch-screen and scrolled down to the page of the front cover story where he gathered all the information he needed. 

__

A Speed Clydesdale, given the name Quicksilver, was sold to the Capital by an unknown man for $4 million, and the Clydesdale has won every single horserace, where many gamblers have won great amounts of money. 

As it kept coming out first in every race, the champion of the races was predictable and bets were never placed on any other horses and therefore the horserace gambling association was not earning much, and have been forced to ban the Clydesdale from the racetrack. 

The Clydesdale has been put under the hammer and after only a few auctions, it has earned the record for the 'item with the greatest amount bided on'. The winner was Knight Sir Morris Deht, who had won the Silver Clydesdale for a full amount of $6 million, commenting that he was to use it as his steed.

The rest of the news-com was about the Silver Clydesdale and the races it had won, but no more important facts he needed to know of. Remy looked at the top left corner of the news-com frame and realized that the slide had been issued four weeks ago. _Must have been the first Clydesdale…_ Remy thought to himself. 

He went back to the magazine store and started looking for the news-com edition three or two weeks ago. He came to a copy with the headlines **The Untouchable Clydesdale. **It was definitely the second Clydesdale, and Remy scrolled down to the story. 

__

The Untouchable Clydesdale, dubbed The Rogue, was attempted for sale to the Capital by an anonymous man for another $4 million, but was turned down, as the creature was unable to be touched, as whoever came in contact with it would collapse to the ground, and on a few occasions, die. Hence the female Clydesdale has also been dubbed the Clydesdale of Death, and the only information left known about it was that it had been let free into the wild. As to where it had been freed, there was no information given. 

Remy slapped the news-com down onto the store's counter desk, earning a glare from the storeowner. He shrugged the man's gaze off and after making sure that there were no more copies with any data on Clydesdales, he set off to the nearest Cyber-café to find out more about who Sir Morris Deht was and where he was staying.

Remy entered the Cyber-café and made his way over to one of the thousands of Searchers. A Searcher was a computer used to find whatever data you wanted to. All the user had to do was type in keywords and the Searcher would do the rest (A/N: Just like your modern day internet!!) He went to the Searcher directory and entered in 'Sir Morris Deht'. There was only one result, and he wrote the address down on a scrap of paper that he managed to find in the pockets of his trench coat. 

About time he got another lead.

End of Chapter 3


	5. The Speed Clydesdale

A/N: Quicksilver fans rejoice!! But there's a bit of torture here… -.- … Anywayz..

I can't be bothered saying this in every single chpt, so just keep in mind the disclaimer's on the theme page… altho it's kinda obv I don't own X-men evo… ^__^

-- sylver_rain

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The Clydesdales

Chapter 4: The Speed Clydesdale

Remy walked up to the giant steel gates. The land that belonged to Sir Deht was huge, and surrounding the entire estate was a high wall, and all he could see was the upper levels of the grand stone-mansion. 

Sir Deht's mansion was far out in a very country-like part of the capital, and Remy had to hitchhike to get here. He had to jump off and on different rides, in order to get to his destination where not many people went, unless it was Sir Deht himself or some friend of his. 

Seeing no way to get in at the moment, Remy climbed up to one of the highest branches of a tall tree outside the walls. He hauled himself up onto the topmost branch, and took a peek in. The mansion was, as expected, huge and magnificent, and by the looks of it, it was definitely of a Knight's taste. As medieval as it seemed, the mansion looked like the futuristic version of a Knight's court, having all the electronic devices and automated machinery in it. He saw sheds, charging lanes where Knights did their daily charging, a few servants and maids strolling around and doing their jobs, and other Knightly stuff. But no Clydesdale. 

Then he heard a faint hum. It was soft, and he could barely hear it, but the next second, the humming was louder and he could finally hear its source. Nearby where he was, he saw a blur of silvery white, and to his surprise, a silver steed materialized right in front of the giant gates. There was a bulky man on it, no doubt Sir Morris Deht himself, and he was sweating, but laughing hysterically at the same time. 

"Never in my life!" Remy heard the man say loudly, "Never in my entire life, have I rode a horse with such speed." Sir Deht pressed his finger against a glass pad at the side of the gates, and after the device had scanned his thumbprint, the gates whirred softly and slowly opened itself. 

As the gates took its time opening, Remy got a closer look at the first Clydesdale to have been created. It was a male and he looked sick and extremely weak, as if he had been starved. He was very thin that Remy could see the lines of his rib cage, and his legs were shaking from exhaustion, and he also had a strange metal collar around his neck. Sir Deht was laughing and talking in mockery at the steed, either completely blind to the creature's suffering or not really caring. After Remy heard what the Knight was saying, he was pretty sure it was the latter. 

"Boy, you were worth every penny." Sir Deht said. "I admire you of your strong spirit, boy. But the running away had to stop. Just a few less meals and some… persuasion, and you have broken…" Remy frowned at the whip scars he saw on the Clydesdale's back and heard Sir Deht continue his verbal torment on his mount. "And a lot of thanks to this baby…" The man patted a control device that hung at his belt. The panting Clydesdale grunted, trying to stay standing on his frail slim legs. 

The gates were fully opened by now and Sir Deht squeezed his ankles together to signal to the Clydesdale to move forward. Quicksilver walked forward obediently, trying his hardest not to fall, and Remy watched in dismay as the gates closed behind them.

Remy felt disgusted that any human would treat an animal like that. The worse part was that a Clydesdale had human emotions, and could feel every pain inflicted on it, and would probably be terrified. Remy just hoped that the used-to-be-mutant's spirit hadn't really broken. 

It turned out that his hopes were granted, as he heard a yell from inside. He quickly stretched as high as he could on the tree branch, trying to see what was going on behind the gates. 

Sir Deht was on the ground, crying out in rage. It was obvious the Clydesdale was getting very annoyed and had thrown him off, but as a punishment, several servants were whipping him harshly. Quicksilver let out a shrill neigh, and proceeded to make a run for it. To Remy's utter amazement, he had reached the end of the court in less than a second, but suddenly he saw sparks of electricity fly from the collar the Clydesdale had around his neck, and Quicksilver emit a ear-splitting neigh before dropping to the ground unconscious. 

Sir Deht was cursing rudely and he placed the control device that activated the collar on the steed back at his belt. Remy knew the collar was going to be a big problem if he was going to get Quicksilver out of the torture house. 

Remy had, with great help from pass break-ins, managed to get over the walls without tripping any alarms. All he had to do was explode some wires and devices, and he could get in with not many problems. 

It was night and the entire mansion was dark. No servants or maids were to be seen, and Gambit stealthily made his way to the back of the mansion, where the stables were. 

He saw many horses resting in the sheds, but no Clydesdale. All he could hear was the occasional grunt and snorts from the steeds, and he finally came upon a stable unlike the others. 

This one was metal, and looked more like a cage. He looked through the bars and saw a flash of the moonlight reflecting off the silver skin of the Clydesdale locked inside. Quicksilver, with his back facing Remy, seemed defeated, and was continuously knocking the collar against a metal bar, in a dull and weary attempt to break it. Remy couldn't help but chuckle softly at the comical sight, as the Silver Clydesdale wasn't really putting any effort in it. The horse heard his soft laugh, and warily turned around to see who it was. His movements were slow, and very uncharacteristic of the fastest animal in the world. 

Remy choked back a gasp at the sight of him. The Clydesdale would have looked beautiful and magnificent if it weren't for his sickly shape and the scars on his back. Remy smirked at the Speed Clydesdale, and wrapped his fingers around the lock of the cage, and started charging it up with kinetic energy.

Quicksilver watched in amusement as Gambit's eyes turned a dark, blood red. Remy knew full well that blowing up the lock would probably set off an alarm, but there weren't many options he had. 

He stepped back from the glowing lock and with an explosion, the lock detonated and a siren immediately went off. He pulled open the gate and grabbed the reigns hanging from Quicksilver's mouth. The creature let himself get guided out the cage, and the sound of approaching footsteps was getting louder, and he could hear Sir Deht's voice echoing throughout the mansion, "What in blazes?!"

Remy whispered to the Clydesdale, hoping desperately that the spell that had been cast upon it did not take away the understanding of the human language, "Remy know you're tired, but try to make a dash for it." Thankfully, Quicksilver seemed to have understood, as he sped off toward the nearest wall, with Remy clinging on to his neck. 

All Remy could remember was one second he was inside, and the next, he was over the wall and far away. Then suddenly Quicksilver fell to the ground, as sparks flew from the collar around his neck. 

"Shit…" Remy muttered. He looked back, and they were quite a distance away from the mansion. He would have marveled at how far they have gotten in a single second, but now was not the time.

He pulled out a laser blade from the insides of his boot and started melting the collar in half. It took a while, as the collar seemed to be made of some kind of hard metal. Finally, in about ten minutes, he was done. However, the sound of approaching horses told him that it as time to bail. He threw the collar into a stream, which sent it floating downstream. 

He shook the exhausted Clydesdale, "C'mon… a little bit more, just run up, through the stream…" Quicksilver managed to pull himself up onto his knees, and finally stood up on shaking legs.

"Good boy…" Remy whispered. The Clydesdale had obviously ran out of his mutant speed, and now was struggling to even stand as he slowly crawled his way upstream. Sir Deht and his men were probably following the tracker downstream, which gave them more time to get away safely. 

Remy helped the heavily panting Quicksilver up the stream, and when he finally decided that they were a safe enough distance away, he guided the worn out creature under a tree, and allowed him to fall into a peaceful slumber. 

He started up a fire after exploding some pieces of wood, and set himself down near the Clydesdale for a rest. 

Before he fell asleep, he glanced at the silver steed as the golden glow from the flames glimmered over the creature's silver mane, and he fell asleep, glad that he had at last found a Clydesdale and wondering what the next day would bring. 

End of chapter 4


	6. A Short And Very Fast Trip

A/N: Bit more Quicksilver, and Chrissie, my second reviewer had mentioned putting in suspense in future chpts. I've given it a incey-wincey go in this chpt, but it's very small. I really suck at suspense… but hopefully I'll do better for future chpts… so don't give up one me!! Thanx to reviewers!! *BIG smile!!*

****

The Clydesdales

Chapter 5: A Short (And Very Fast) Trip

Gambit opened his eyes and shut them quickly when bright morning sun blinded him temporarily. As his eyes started to get used to the brilliant morning shine, he opened them slowly, and heard the gentle breathing of someone, or something nearby. 

He turned and saw the thin frame of a horse next to him. For a moment he wondered what in the world a horse was doing next to him. Then he remembered scenes from last night, and the animal next to him was a Clydesdale. A smile etched across his face as he finally registered the thought that he had managed to obtain the first step toward his ultimate goal. He got up, stretched, and then made his way down to the river to freshen up. 

He splashed the cool water onto his face, and felt his eyes start to open up. His stomach grumbled lightly, and no doubt the Clydesdale was starving. Thankfully, the area was full of apple trees, and they were all pretty ripe. Talk about luck.

He strolled around the apple plantation, picking a rosy red apple every now and then. After a while of breathing in fresh air and taking in the peaceful scenery, he walked over where Quicksilver lay, leaving the creature to have a ready-made breakfast once it woke up.

He went over to the river for a bath. After stripping, he jumped into the cool water, and swam about in it for a moment. Thoughts about what to do next, what will happen next and whether the Clydesdale would run off entered his mind and wouldn't leave. 

When he was done, he changed and went back to the Speed Clydesdale. To his relief, the creature was still there, but he was awake and the apples were gone. Remy walked over to it but he tensed up straightaway, making Remy stop in his tracks. He slowly approached the Clydesdale, and he stretched his arm out. 

Quicksilver looked ready to take off, but instead he just tensed up, preparing for the hand to hit him. However, Remy simply started stroking its head. Quicksilver started to relax a little, and Remy helped the weak horse up and over to the stream where he could quench his thirst. 

Remy didn't blame the Clydesdale for not trusting him. After all Quicksilver went through, who can he trust? At least the creature allowed him to touch him. 

As weak as the Clydesdale was, Remy saw how graceful he was making his way down to the river. After he drank his fill, he merely stared at Remy, wondering what to do next. Remy felt it was best to introduce himself first.

"Quicksilver…" Remy said softly, "My name is Remy, and I am also a mutant, just like you." Quicksilver's ears pricked up. "I know about you getting turned into an animal, and I know there are others like you out there." 

Quicksilver dropped his head and looked away, as if thinking about something. Remy continued, "But I'm here to help you. I need to find the other Clydesdales, and I need to find where Kar is. Do you want to follow me?"

Quicksilver gave a quick nod, and Remy felt relieved that now not only did he have a companion to continue his journey with, but also a quicker and easier means of transportation, after it fully recovered, of course. Besides, the Clydesdale could make it halfway across the world in less than two seconds if he wanted to. 

Remy was about to say something when he heard a faint hum coming form the distance. He listened quietly, and after a while, the hum turned into the sound of countless hooves striking the ground. 

"Deht…" Remy muttered under his breath. Quicksilver understood, but yet didn't panic. The herd of Deht's horses was coming closer, and Remy signaled to Quicksilver that they had to bail soon.

Quicksilver trotted over. Remy looked at him in surprise. "You'll let me get on?" Remy asked? The Clydesdale seemed to have nodded, shaking his silver mane at the same time. Remy felt guilty about making the recovering creature carry his weight. But Deht was getting nearer and they didn't really have many choices. 

Remy nodded and hauled himself onto the slick steed, and right before Deht appeared with a pack of hound dogs, Quicksilver had disappeared in a flash. 

Now, Remy couldn't see a single thing. All he could make out were blurs of different shades of green, brown and many random colors. Many landscapes passed by in the second, and he could feel the strong wind blow sharply at his hair, stinging his eyes whenever he opened them. He clutched on tightly to Quicksilver's silver mane, as the Clydesdale of Speed made his way over the Earth's crust. 

The next half-a-second, the faint hum of Quicksilver's hooves lightly striking the ground stopped, and Remy looked down, and managed to make out the color blue. Sea blue. His mind finally registered that Quicksilver was galloping over an ocean. The waves under them didn't seem to be moving, probably due to the speed at which the Clydesdale was travelling. He felt a smooth leap, and managed to turn his head back to see a whale's tail disappear over the horizon. Underneath them, all Remy see was a mixture of bits of white and shades of green and blue. 

In another half-a-second, the familiar hum was back, and Remy saw the blurs of green and brown again, with the occasional flash of color. 

Then they stopped. It wasn't the abrupt kind of stop. It was a smooth stop, so that Remy wouldn't go flying forward. 

Remy felt his chest rise and fall. That was definitely what he'd call a 'breath-taking' experience, and he was amazed at the speed of the Clydesdale. 

"Whoa…" He managed to wheeze out as he clumsily slipped off Quicksilver's back. The world around him seemed to be twirling round and round, and all he could make out here and there were the blue of the sky, and flashes of silver glinting off the Clydesdale's hair. 

After recovering, he helped Quicksilver find a few more fruits, before trying to make out where he was. 

They were in some sort of forest, and no doubt there was a town not far away. Remy knew that Quicksilver was probably exhausted, and he let the Clydesdale rest under the shade of a large willow tree. He started roaming the forest, taking in the beautiful scenery. 

Everywhere he looked were tall trees. Trees that he had long forgotten the names of. He closed his eyes, and took in the scent of timber and moss. He opened his eyes again when he had that creepy feeling of someone watching him.

He looked around him, but saw nothing. All he could see were trees, a few shrubs, and the spots of sunlight that managed to find its way through the holed in the trees' wide canopies. 

He narrowed his eyes and glanced around again, just to make sure. 

When he was finally convinced that he saw nothing, he made his way back to Quicksilver, who had finished eating a long time ago and seemed well enough. Remy said to the Clydesdale, "We need to go back to Milestone Capital. I need to find out more about any other Clydesdales that had been created." 

Quicksilver seemed to have understood, and allowed Remy onto his back again, and once again, the Clydesdale of Speed took off. 

Remy could remember being in the forest, and in the next two seconds, he found himself a far distance away from a giant city full of skyscrapers and tall metal buildings. He jumped off Quicksilver and said, "Alright. Remember, when you hear me whistle twice, come here, ok?" Quicksilver gave a quick nod before dashing to the woods nearby. 

Remy breathed in a gulp of air. He had just managed to escape Milestone Capital with a stolen Clydesdale that cost 6 million dollars and now he was returning to it. 

The change in environment was very abrupt as he strolled into the Capital. First, it was greenery every, with a forest to the left and many mountains in the background. But just as he stepped into Milestone, everything became gray. 

It was metal all around, and Remy made his way over to a different magazine stall. He picked up a news-com that was issued the say before, and saw the front page, **Speed Clydesdale Stolen…** Remy smiled as he scrolled down, reading the report. The only mention of who stole Quicksilver was that it was a mutant, but nothing else. 

He picked up that day's news-com and read the bold headlines, **New Clydesdales.** Remy raised an eyebrow and scrolled down. 

_ An anonymous man, no doubt the same person who sold the previous Clydesdales to the Capital, sold Spyke, the Clydesdale of Thorns, and Angel, the Winged Clydesdale to the Capital, each for the risen price of $5 million. They were bought by Billionaire John Parrie and Richard Harrisford for $6 million each. Both Parrie and Harrisford gave out no clues or hints as to where the Clydesdale was taken and what it was being used for._

Remy sighed and made his way toward entrance of Milestone Capital, when he heard a very familiar voice calling behind him, but he just couldn't put his finger on it…

End of chapter 5


	7. Feathers and Thorns

A/N: Okiez… another chappie's up! You should be able to guess which two Clydesdales make an appearance here!! ^__^ Oohz.. thank u to ALL my reviewerz!! I'm really so happy!! So it's all ur faults!! Hahaz… I seriously got so much encouragement from u lot, so keep making me happy and REVIEW!! *I'm feeling all jumpy now!! :)*

However I'm sorrie peepz… this is gonna be the last chpt… cuz I'm sick of writing and I wanna ditch this fic…

…April foolz!! Haha.. gotcha there, didn't I?

-- sylver_rain

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The Clydesdales

Chapter 6: Feathers and Thorns

Remy was making his way down the street when he heard a shout come from a fair distance behind him. 

He spun around, and saw the silhouette of a very short and… wide man. He waited for the stout figure to come running up, and once the person's face was in view, he recognized the familiar fleshy face instantly. 

"Officer Karls?? Long time no see. Gambit's surprise the police haven't sacked you yet… especially after you allowed me to escape…" Remy said with a cheeky smirk." The policeman glowered angrily at Remy and said, "Why you little punk. I'd never thought I'd see you again! You annoying little mosquito…" Remy grinned widely, annoying the officer a lot more. "Why, you know you missed Gambit… cuz I sure missed you…" 

Officer Karls glared at Remy and pulled out a pair of handcuffs, "I'll take care of you once and for all…" Remy sighed mockingly and shook his head, "My, my, Officer Karls sir, when will you ever learn?"

Remy took off, jumping over fences and dodging into dark and dirty alleyways. Officer Karls pulled out a communicator, pressed a button and started yelling into it, "The menace is back!! Get all stations out!! We'll get this rat for sure this time!"

Remy felt the sensation of thrill pounding in his heart. The same sensation he always felt whenever cops were pursuing him. He raced down the narrow passage, leaping over bins and trashcans, and he finally came to a familiar apartment. 

He found the fire escape ladders in the same place as five years before, and he started climbing it. After years of practice, he was well accustomed to climbing it, so he reached the top pretty fast. 

Cops were milling below, on the lookout for him, and he smirked. They were still as dumb as ever, and they weren't a difficult obstacle to overcome. However, they did pose as a problem to him roaming the Capital, as now the entire Capital's police department would shoot him the minute they saw him. 

He glanced down at Officer Karls talking to another policeman, "…and I'll bet it was that little rat which stole the Silver Clydesdale, no doubt about it, that mangy mutt…"

Remy felt it was about time he got out of the Capital. He leapt over the narrow cleave and over to another building's rooftop. After jumping over to a few more buildings and making sure there weren't any cops below, he clambered down the fire escape of the apartment building he had landed on, and was soon sprinting toward the entrance gates to the Capital. 

He heard shouts behind him, and looked back to see a group of policemen running after him. He kept his pace, and he was definitely out-running them. _Losers…_ Remy thought to himself. 

He reached the entrance, put two fingers in his mouth and emitted a earsplitting whistle. Quicksilver materialized in front of him. He hopped on, and they were off before the cops even had a chance to say stop. 

Remy felt the wind at his hair and after less than half a second, he was back in the forest. He stumbled off Quicksilver before adding, "Two more Clydesdales have been created. Spyke and Angel, I think." He had no idea what to do at the moment. He didn't have time to get to a searcher in the Capital so they were pretty much stuck.

He and Quicksilver walked lazily through the forest. They were coming out into a clearing not far from the Capital, and both of them kept on walking forward and pass giant trees that had earlier on blocked their view of a large round structure.

In front of the huge oval building was a sign reading "Tinol Arena". It was in a small deserted town not far from Milestone Capital. Remy had remembered wandering out into the forest and seeing this place. But he had never actually gone inside before, partially due to the fact that the arena was closed down. He had no idea why the building was never demolished but he had the feeling it was because no one in the Capital actually cared. Remy spotted a neat curved row of some kind of strong, hard bar-like thorns driven into the hard ground at the side of the arena's entrance, with s few stray snow-white feathers. "Spyke and Angel, huh? Looks like we've just had a meeting with lady luck…"

They made their way over to the opening of the round structure. He walked in silently, followed by Quicksilver. 

At first, it was dark and both Remy and Quicksilver couldn't see a thing. But as they kept on going down the dim corridors, their eyes started to adjust to the dark and they finally came to a large stadium. But there was nothing. All that met them was an empty stage and silence.

Remy felt a tad disappointed. He had expected for at least something to be there. But he wasn't about to give up. He told Quicksilver to make a fast overall search of the entire building while he surveyed the stage. 

He was just getting started when the Silver Clydesdale returned eight seconds later, shaking his head. Remy frowned but continued with his search on the large stage for clues of any kind.

After exploring almost every nook and cranny that was visible, he finally gave up, collapsing onto a chair. But he had done it with a lot of force, therefore moving the chair at the same time. But one of the chair's legs didn't budge, causing him to fall over. 

He glared at the chair first, and then a thought entered his head. He suspiciously walked over to the chair, and tried to lift it up. Still, one of its legs would not come off the floor. After countless tries of pulling it off the ground, he decided to rotate it instead, and this resulted in the entire row of pews on the front row getting lifted up by mechanical devices and automated things, exposing a wide staircase going downward.

Remy and Quicksilver looked at each other and both simultaneously raised a brow.

"Jackpot." Remy grinned.

Both man and Clydesdale made their way down the steep steps as quietly as possible. Well, it was pretty tough for the four-legged Quicksilver, so he had to speed down instead. But at least not much sound was made. 

It was a pretty long way down, and his view dimmed as he continued further below.

The passageway was about five feet wide, and three meters high. It was dark, almost to the point of pitch black, but after a while of feeling around and guiding the Clydesdale, Remy finally saw the dull glow of white light coming from behind a corner to the left. 

He tapped Quicksilver lightly on the nose and they both moved as silently as they possibly could toward the light's source. 

They turned around the corner and saw a beam of light illuminating from the crack under the door. They could also hear indistinct sounds of hoots and whistles. Remy opened the door just enough to take a peek in. 

Sure enough, there were the two Clydesdales. But there was also a large glass dome and thousands of spectators sitting on the pews that surrounded the dome. 

Remy was hoping that this wasn't what he thought it was.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for coming today." A voice boomed over the loud speakers inside. 

"Today is a special day. Instead of the usual animal fights we have," The crowd hushed, "You get to place your bets on two of the latest CLYDESDALES!" 

The crowd cheered wildly. Remy's eyes narrowed. Yep, unfortunately it _was_ what he thought it was. Another gambling match, where they put two animals together and bet on who wins. He had heard of these battles before, but had never known that they had been held under the Tinol Stadium. 

He hated these things. They were pointless and stupid, and all for the mere enjoyment of seeing two animals tear each other apart. The crowd was full of men and only a few ladies. No doubt all of them were rich. 

The commentator continued, "And today, you folks have gotten yourselves seats to the Battle of the Century!!" The crowd went wild again. "Presenting, my good people, The Pegasus and The Unicorn!"

End of chapter 6


	8. Pegasus and The Unicorn

A/N: Thank you to ALL my reviewers… ur encouragement is totally making me more determined to continue with the fic. Thank u all SOOOOO much!!! ^__^ So happy!! So this is what they say real joy feels like.. *stars in eyes*

Repliez – 

*: Rahne? Ooh.. sounds like a challenge!! [Pietro style].. actually, I'm not all that confident in myself.. -.- But I'll try!! In fact, u've just got me pretty curious as to how she'll turn out too… Yepz, I'll have to come up wid something!! In the future chpts tho…

--sylver_rain

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The Clydesdales

Chapter 7: Pegasus and The Unicorn

Remy turned and looked into the large glass dome. Two horse-like creatures stood inside, seemingly weak and tired. But as disheveled and tousled as they looked, they were both beautiful and magnificent on their own way. 

Angel, a beautiful ivory Clydesdale with long blonde hair and snow-white wings protruding from his back, had a chain connected to a shackle around his left rear ankle. He was tugging at it, obviously very displeased with it. 

Across Angel was Spyke, a chocolate brown horse with short platinum blonde hair. However, there was no unicorn appendage to be seen. Spyke stood there, breathing heavily, but standing tall and firm. 

But what Remy was most wary of were the metal collars around both the Clydesdales' necks. They were the same type of collar Quicksilver had back at Deht's. 

"May the Battle… BEGIN!" The commentator yelled. Cheers rang throughout the entire soundproof stadium. 

The mechanically controlled cuff was unlatched from Angel's ankle, but the now-freed Clydesdale made no movement whatsoever. 

Spyke was just as motionless as Angel, and both the Clydesdales stood there, staring at each other. If he had known any better, Remy would have thought they were communicating. 

The crowd was starting to get impatient, and Remy could see the Clydesdales' owners sitting at the front rows. Parrie and Harrisford. They both seemed to be getting slightly annoyed at the inactive Clydesdales, and Remy saw Harrisford, Angel's owner, give a slight nod to one of his servants. 

The servant nodded back, and pressed a button on a remote control. This was followed by the sound of electricity, and Remy saw Angel cry out in pain, falling onto his front knees. Spyke shuffled in alarm, letting out a disapproving snort. 

When Spyke did nothing else, the servant pressed the button again, and Angel neighed shrilly as sparks flew from his neck. 

"Come on!" Someone from the crowd yelled, "We wanna see some action!"

Spyke seemed angry, yet very unsure or what to do. The mahogany Clydesdale had to make a decision soon. The servant was about to press the button again when the choice was made and Spyke stomped his foot. 

A golden brown horn shot out of his forehead, and the audience cheered madly. Remy watched in horror as Angel stood up, confusion and puzzlement evident in his eyes. 

Spyke responded by swinging his head, shooting out the horn. Angel dodged in time, and another spike replaced the previous one on Spyke's forehead. When Spyke fired again, Angel had no choice but to spread his wings, and he took to the air. The crowd half gasped half cheered as Angel rose ten feet off the ground, flapping his albatross-like wings. Spyke grunted and sent a few more thorns flying. Angel skillfully dodged them, but unlike Spyke, he had no offensive capabilities to counter Spyke's attack. 

Remy could have sworn that Spyke was intentionally missing. Most of the fired spikes were sticking out of the two-inch thick glass pane behind the Winged Clydesdale. 

But this couldn't keep up for long. Remy decided that it was about time he made a move. He made his way amongst the mass of people toward the servant with the remote, and once he got there tapped on the servant's shoulder. 

"Excuse me, Mon ami, would you mind telling Gambit where my grandma is?" The servant raised an eyebrow in bewilderment and replied, "I'm sorry, I wouldn't know who your grandmother is…"

Remy pretended he hadn't heard, and kept talking whilst pulling the servant away from Harrisford's sight, "You see, Gambit had followed her to this gambling den and now, she had thrown up all over her nice new dress and she said she be going to a toilet to clean up. It was gross… Gambit remember seeing some corns and peas and…"

"Uhh… I'm not really sure I want to hear what your grandma had for lunch…" The servant seemed to be getting a little sick, but Remy continued, "But when Gambit go look for her, Gambit can't find her…"

"Sir," The servant seemed to be getting annoyed and a little creeped out by him, "I really don't know who or where your grandma is, so please, I'm sorry that I can't help you. Now I'm sure there's nothing else, right?"

Remy shrugged and said, "Well, you can help take something for Gambit."

The servant looked pretty relieved that Remy was off the 'grandma' topic. "Take what?"

"This!" Remy yelled before knocking the servant out with a single punch in the face. "That was too easy…" Remy mumbled to himself before taking the remote from the servant's belt. 

He found an 'unlatch' button and jammed his finger onto it. 

Angel was taken by surprise when the collar dropped off his neck, and the crowd looked at each other in bafflement while Parrie and Harrisford looked at each other in horror. 

When Spyke saw that the collar was off Angel, he sent a whole round of spikes jutting out from his neck, ripping his collar into pieces. Quite suddenly, two bull-like horns sprung out from either sides of the unicorn horn on his forehead, and he turned toward Parrie and Harrisford, who were gaping in fear behind the wall of glass. 

Spyke backed up a little, then charged straight at the two men. 

The sound of a solid crackling noise echoed over the screams of the crowd, and Remy stared in disbelief as a long silver line of a crack shot up and across the glass semispherical dome. The glass wall looked like it was weakened, and the terror-stricken Parrie and Harrisford stared with open mouths at Spyke who was backing away again. When Spyke charged and accurately hit the same spot, the thick glass gave way, sending glass splinters flying all over. 

Spyke discarded the now blunt horns, and signaled for Angel to escape. Angel landed and galloped out of the dome with Spyke in the lead. 

Although the crowd was scrambling around in disorder, Remy gave two loud whistles, and Quicksilver appeared before him. He climbed onto the Clydesdale's back, and once Spyke and Angel noticed another of their kind, he ordered Quicksilver to go for the exit. Quicksilver sped over to the door, and with a powerful kick, sent them flying off their hinges. 

They waited for both Spyke and Angel to charge through the crowd, and then the group tore through the dark passageway, Quicksilver not using his super speed in order for Spyke and Angel to catch up.

The Speed Clydesdale appeared to have excellent memory, as after what seemed like countless turns and corners, they finally came to the opening in which Remy and Quicksilver had entered from.

However, the door was closing, and by the time they reached the top of the stairs, the dull beam of daylight which was shining in before a few seconds ago disappeared, and the mechanical hatch was locked tight. 

Angel and Spyke neighed in panic, and the sound of an approaching mob was distinctly clear from behind them.

Remy hopped off the Silver Clydesdale, and walked in front of the hatch. He placed his hands on them and his eyes turned a dull red. He began channeling kinetic energy into the hatch, and after a few seconds, the entire metal cover was glowing orange.

"Duck!" He yelled, and they retreated down the stairs. A loud explosion vibrated the stadium, and a heat wave almost pushed them all off balance. 

But the hatch was finally open and so they raced out, further away from the shouts and screams they heard coming from below.

They tore out of the stadium, putting as much distance as they possibly could between the unstable structure and themselves. 

They finally came to a stop, Spyke and Angel panting heavily, and they collapsed next to a river.

Remy clumsily sat on the floor, spreading his legs out, he himself breathing heavily too.

"Well, that was exciting." He grinned at the Clydesdales.

End of chapter 7

A/N: Oohz!! Important question peepz!! Do u think I should do parts of the rest of the fic in some of the Clydesdale's POV? So it's kinda what's in their head, and they can kinda talk to each other and all that in horse language or wadeva?? Cuz constantly being in Remy's POV may get boring… u may wanna know what the Clydesdale's thinking, no?

Review and tell me wad u think?? I really need to know b4 I write the next chappie!!


	9. We Meet Again

A/N: Ok, most of the peepz that reviewed said that it'd be kewl to have the Clydesdales' POVs, so I'll be doing it!! Thank u ALL for reviewing!! Luvz ya!!

Repliez –

Raliena: Jamie?? Oohz.. Multiple.. hehez, cute little guy.. yerz.. I will definitely try to get him in… just 4 u!! ^__^ However, I got a problem.. I'm not sure how he's gonna look… like all the colors and stuff.. So anyone have any ideas, just lemme know!! And if it's good, I'll give u the credit in a disclaimer thinggy…

Impy: Well, I was thinking about giving them the 'horse' ability to talk to each other… like u know, when they make them horse noises.. so yeaz… Shadowcat WILL be making an appearance.. and as I've said b4, Nightcrawler WILL be back!! ^__^ Patience…my fren..

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The Clydesdales

Chapter 8: We Meet Again

Quicksilver wasn't surprised to see Spyke. He had figured a long time ago that sooner or later the other mutants would end up just like himself. He waited as Spyke and the other unfamiliar Clydesdale quenched their thirsts at the freshwater stream, before trotting up to them. 

"Pietro?" Spyke said. More like nickered, but some how, he could understand this… horse language… or whatever else it was called. 

"Daniels… So we meet again…" He greeted in a Darth Vader voice, then raised a brow, "Who's this?" He gestured to the Pegasus-like Clydesdale. "Angel." He heard Evan's reply. The winged creature spoke up, "You can call me Warren, Warren Worthington, if you'd like." 

Evan suddenly said softy, "Hey… what happen to you?" Quicksilver realized that the scars on his back hadn't fully disappeared, but he shrugged and got back to what he'd been dying to ask, "How were they, when you last saw them?"

Spyke, as if getting shaken back into reality, looked away, "They… I'm not sure…" Pietro frowned, and whether Evan could see it or not, he really didn't care. But Spyke continued, "We were all in kept in different places. Kitty was still unconscious… that's all I know… but I didn't really get to see them." 

Pietro looked down, and Angel spoke up, "He's selling us out in pairs now, for a higher price." _Kar…_ Pietro didn't need Angel to identify who he was talking about. "And I could be wrong, but the next two may be Lance and Todd."

As unfortunate as it was for another two of his friends to end in the same fate as himself, Pietro felt a trace of relief that the two were going to at least get out of Kar's confinement and out into the world, where they could at least come up with some idea on their counter attack. 

If they _could_ counter attack. 

He had been there before and had sneaked into the castle. But getting in was a strenuous and intricate task, and the inside of the castle certainly didn't make going in any more desirable. 

"Where's Kurt and Rogue?" Evan interrupted his thoughts. "No idea." Pietro replied. 

Evan looked at him in disbelief, "Well, go find them then, you beatnik!" "Easier said than done, genius!" Pietro snapped back, their old rivalry re-emerging. 

"Well, you ARE capable of carrying out a search of the entire world in fifteen minutes, you know."

"And what do we tell Ol' Gambit over there?" Pietro signaled to Remy, who was slowly approaching the two grunting Clydesdales with interest. 

"You'll be back before he can even ask 'Where's Quicksilver?'" Evan snorted.

"Considering the fact that I'd have to check under every bush, in every tree, behind every boulder and atop every mountain, it'd take about twenty five minutes." 

"And the problem is?" Evan sighed.

"What if they're in some kind of cage or something?" Pietro said, a little softer than before, "I… I may not be able to help them out."

Evan rolled his eyes, "And when was that ever a problem for the great Maximoff?" 

Pietro managed to do a smirk even in his Clydesdale form, "Well, just cuz you said such a nice thing by admitting the obvious truth which you've been hiding from yourself for the pass years we've known each other, I'll do it."

Spyke rolled his eyes and said, "Whatever." "Not now though," Pietro added. "Tonight… when the guy's asleep."

Evan looked at his foregoing savior, the mutant who could explode stuff just by coming in contact with it, and gave a nod. "Good idea."

"I know." 

"Man, how hard is it for you to take a compliment humbly?" Evan would have smacked his forehead in exasperation with his hands if he weren't balancing on them.

Before Pietro could answer back, Remy came between them, "Well, it's almost dark, and Remy's already set up a fire. You two gonna quit, umn… quarrelling, or… grunting at each other or whatever, and rest?" 

Night took a long time to come, especially for Quicksilver, and so most of the time was used for grazing in the meadow, eating the occasional buttercup, and contemplating on places or areas where Rogue or Kurt may most probably be. But what was most needed was rest.

"You know, just check everything, everywhere." Evan yawned, rolling over on the emerald green grass. 

Warren had his wings spread out leisurely, reflecting the dull glow of the setting sun, which was slowly disappearing behind the nearby forest's trees. 

Quicksilver was lying down on his side, with his eyes closed. He hadn't felt this relaxed ever since… well, he forgot. But that wasn't the point. He hadn't felt this relaxed in ages and the calm, serene atmosphere helped a lot in putting him at ease. "Whatever…" he lazily mumbled a reply.

Remy left the small fire to blaze on till it put itself out. He made his way over to the Clydesdales and lay down on Pietro's right, facing upwards with fingers entwined and cupped behind his head. He closed his eyes, the fragrance of buttercups and midnight dew luring him into a slumber.

Pietro heard the gentle snore coming from Remy, and at that, he silently pulled himself up, and in a flash, took off on his twenty five minute search for two former teammates. 

Remy felt himself fall deeper and deeper asleep, and all he physically felt was a soft gust of cool night breeze blow gently upon his face, and then he was lost in a world of his own.

It was early morning on the other side of the world, and Quicksilver had only been searching for ten minutes so far. No sign of either Rogue or Nightcrawler yet, and he had to admit he was getting a little concerned about them. He zipped into a dark forest, and was zooming around everywhere when he spotted a small fire in the distance, hidden behind some tall trees. 

He cautiously… or more like carelessly sped over, and to both his delight _and_ dismay, saw the weak and disheveled body of a horse. A Clydesdale.

"Rogue!?" He almost yelled, or neighed shrilly. The soft glow of the small fire reflected upon the brown and white blotches on the Clydesdale's skin. She looked up, and almost called out in astonishment, "Pietro!?"

Pietro looked down. Around the small fire were about five men, no doubt Clydesdale poachers, and they were all dressed up in such a way where every bit of skin was covered except the face. 

__

Looks like they've done a lot of planning… Pietro thought to himself. Tranquilizers and guns littered the ground, and he noiselessly made his way around the camp in super speed, stopping in front of her. The fatigued he had earlier seen on her face was now replaced with relief, and he looked at the chains that held her to a branch on the tree. 

He'd better think of something before the poachers woke up.

It was a small rustle, but it was enough to get Gambit stirring. What took him by surprise next was the sound of a gunshot piercing the air and a jerk at his left thigh, which sent a rush of pain shooting up his entire limb. 

"SHIT!" He yelled. 

End of chapter 8


	10. The Sky's the Limit

A/N: Whoohoo!! Sorrie for the three day wait… haven't been feeling well and was typing real slow. But it's all good now! Yay, peepz!! Rogue's here!! Hmmz.. feel like eating chocolate now… 

Repliez –

Chrissie: Need u to rewrite the word for the color of his hair and tail.. and thanx for the suggestion!! :) umnz.. not sure abt Storm and Logan. I definitely can't put Wolverine in… too hard. Storm?? Possible..

Raliena: Hahaz.. kewlz! I'll consider!! Thanx so muchiez!!

-- sylver_rain

****

The Clydesdales

Chapter 9: The Sky's the Limit

Quicksilver looked up at the branch that held the other end of the metal chain. The branch looked weak, and it _was_ a pretty old tree. 

He didn't have to back up at all, and in a burst of speed, he had ran up the tree and was now on the branch.

If you're wondering how the hell a horse could fit up on a branch, it was a big branch, and he could somehow balance on it.

The thing creaked a little, then didn't budge anymore. _Damn…_ he thought to himself, and heard Rogue chuckle a little, despite the distressing situation they were in at the moment, "Ya really need to put on some weight, huh?" 

Pietro rolled his eyes, then came up with some bright idea. It would wake the poachers up, but they'd deal with that later. He jumped high into the air, and once his hooves came in contact with the branch, it went toppling onto the ground.

This caused the leaves to rustle violently, making very loud noises, and thus the poachers awoke. 

"What the fuck?" One of them said in bewilderment. 

Pietro had managed to not fall along with the branch, and had landed quite safely. The chain was off the branch, so Rogue was free.

"There's two of 'em!!" The poachers began scrambling to get out of their sleeping bags and to get their tranquilizers, and Quicksilver brushed his muzzle over Rogue's cheek.

She felt the power while he felt the drain, and he quickly pulled back before his powers were completely sapped away. He stumbled back a bit, but regained composure in no time. The poachers were about to shoot.

"Let's go." He breathed out and dashed off, Rogue in pursuit. 

It didn't take Gambit long to register the fact that he just got shot. He pulled himself up, as the other two Clydesdales neighed in panic. 

Spyke immediately produced an armor of plates and spikes over his body, and started firing back at whatever was shooting at them.

The bullets and some sort of injection-looking things were flying out from the forest about fifteen meters away, and it was difficult to see exactly _who_ were shooting them.

Angel trotted over to Remy, who hauled himself onto the Clydesdales back. With Gambit hanging on to his neck, Angel spread his wings and took off.

Remy felt Angel lift off the ground, with his wings flapping with all its might. The wind slapped his face as Remy looked down and saw people coming out from the forest trees and under the moonlight, where he could see were policemen from the Capital.

"There! The little rat's up there! Get 'im! Just don't hit the Clydesdale." One of them yelled, pointing up at him and Angel. Remy stole a quick glance at Spyke, to see that the Clydesdale was doing pretty well. 

Tranquilizers bounced of Evan's body armor harmlessly as he shot out spikes, accurately hitting the policemen's weapons. As much as he hated them, he didn't have the heart to actually kill them. 

The policemen were now shooting at Angel and Remy, and Angel was dodging the bullets, with a little difficulty due to the extra weight of Remy.

"Angel! Go first! I'll handle this myself!" He yelled out to the Pegasus. He was pretty sure that the policemen could only hear a shrill neigh coming from him. But Angel nodded reluctantly in acknowledgement flew off. 

He turned back to face the policemen. Two horns appeared on his head, and a pair of small curved thorns came out from either sides of his muzzle. He concentrated and with the sound of a small crack, a symmetrical pattern of spikes, big and small, shot out from his back, and two long arched spikes, like the two side prongs of a trident, emerged from his shoulders, sticking out toward the front. This created a pretty intimidating image, and Evan didn't really blame the policemen for backing away in fear. 

But he had to admit this was pretty fun. He stomped his forelegs and raked his right rear hoof against the ground, just like how a bull would, and he charged toward the people with his head bent low, displaying the sharp points of the horns. 

The group of men parted like the Red Sea, screaming in fear, and he turned around to do it again. "This _is_ getting fun…"

Remy held on tight to Angel's neck, as the Clydesdale's long blonde hair whipped at his face. They were in the clouds now, and out of bullet range, and Remy breathed in the fresh, moist night air. Angel wings gave a hard push, and they were up and above the clouds.

Although Remy's leg was still hurting like hell, it seemed like pure heaven up here, with an addition of one of the most angelic horses too, and he couldn't hold back a gasp of amazement. The sky was dark, but the clouds shone brightly, reflecting the moonlight's pale silver beams. It was extremely quiet, aside from the wind howling at his ears and Angel's breathing. 

He breathed out the air that he had subconsciously been holding, and saw the mist of water vapor come out from his mouth. The 'skyscape' was breathtaking, and when Angel lowered down to the top of the clouds, it almost seemed like the Clydesdale was galloping over the surface of the flat hazy terrain. 

Angel leaned to the left and stopped flapping, turning and gliding down into the clouds. They emerged from under the clouds and far down, they could see the little dots that were Spyke and the humans.

Remy had to squint a little before being able to tell what was going on down there. It looked like the policemen were shooting some sort of big, cloth thing at Spyke, and it seemed like the Clydesdale was in trouble.

His thoughts were confirmed when Angel neighed shrilly, swooping down in a large spiral descent. 

The policemen were shooting out nets from some bazooka looking guns at him now. At first, it wasn't really a problem. A net would be thrown onto him and Spyke would send out rows of spikes, shredding the fabric to pieces. 

But the nets just kept coming, and he had tried to run, but had tripped over the long material. And after a while, the spikes weren't working. It'd shoot out through the nets but somehow, the nets were getting entangled in each other, and they were getting heavier too.

Shouts of cheers erupted from the humans, and he heard the faint neigh from high above, no doubt Angel.

He was starting to stagger under the heavy weight of the layer of nets when he felt a strong breeze whip by. Then another. It blinded him for a second, but as soon as he got his eyes to function properly, he saw that all the policemen were on the ground. 

He felt the nets getting tugged off by someone, and turned his head around to see Rogue trying to pull them off.

"Rogue?" She smiled at him through her gritted teeth that were still trying to tear the nets off, "Ah'll getcha outta this. Just hold on."

Another gust of wind, and the policemen who had just pulled themselves up where knock off their feet again. "Suckers." He heard the smug voice of Pietro from somewhere to the right.

Remy could see two horse-like figures enter the scene and he assumed that Quicksilver had probably found another Clydesdale. 

But they both had super speed? 

Angel swooped down further, knocking over some policemen, and turned back to do it again. 

How the police from the Capital found him, he didn't know. But they probably suspected him for stealing the valuable Clydesdales and they were in some way, quite right. Since they were shooting bullets at him and hoping to hit him in some fatal body part, he naturally assumed they were out for his blood, and they were most probably ordered to. 

He was jerked out of his thoughts when he felt Angel make a smooth landing. He alighted at once, and looked around to realize that the police were gone and a number of guns and weapons were stacked neatly in a pile next to a Quicksilver who was looking very proud of himself.

"Nice job, Quickie." He praised. Just as Remy got off the winged Clydesdale, he stumbled to the ground from the sharp pain that shot up with leg. _Oh…_ he thought to himself, _Forgot about it…_

He sat down on the ground and tore at the bloodied part of his pants where he was shot. He ripped off a strip from his own sleeve and skillfully wrapped it around his thigh. 

When he looked up, all the other Clydesdales were looking down at him in… was that concern? "What?" He asked, getting a little uneasy at their gaze.

That was when he got a good look at the new Clydesdale.

With brown and white blotches, it was a beautiful paint mare, with long white hair falling over her back. She had white hooves, and very tired looking eyes. 

In fact, she seemed pretty exhausted. 

He sighed. The Rogue. That was her name, right? But the news never said anything about her being another Speed Clydesdale. It was something about touch-and-die.

Remy pulled himself up with the help of a weary Spyke, and said, "Remy know you're all tired. But we gotta keep moving. Umn, any of you remember where Kar's castle is?" He was replied with them shaking their head in a negative. 

Rogue tried to remember where they were last time when Kar had caught them. It was somewhere… no. She couldn't remember. 

It felt as if her memory on it had been wiped out, as if they had never known anything of it. She was pretty sure that was how the others were feeling. They were clueless as to where Kar's castle was. No doubt the wizard had altered their memories.

Like all the others, she could recall what it was like in the castle and everything that had happened. It was just the castle's location that was a blank.

But somehow, she could feel the information lurking about somewhere in the depth of her mind. It was there, she knew it. But it just wouldn't come out. 

Why did the knowledge of the castle stick with her? Why not the others? Damn, she was getting annoyed at it.

End of chapter 9

A/N: This chappie was pretty much for the sole purpose of describing the part where Angel was over the clouds… *sighx* I wish I could go there… I kinda got an idea of how it is up there when I go overseas. U know, when u're in the plane and u look out the window, and u can see the top of the clouds? Luv it… 


	11. Two More

A/N: Okies… Todd's here!! ^__^ 

-- sylver rain

****

The Clydesdales

Chapter 10: Two more

Remy prepared himself for a long trip. Anytime, Kar could create another two or more Clydesdales, and he had to get to the Castle if he wanted to put the whole thing to a stop.

They had no knowledge as to where Kar was, and Quicksilver had already done a search of the entire world, and had turned up with nothing.

So two options remained. One, the Castle may be underground. Two, the Castle may be underwater. 

But Kar was spitting out Clydesdales like how a sugar-high toad spits out slime, (A/N: Just had to say something in reference to Toddy…) and time was of the essence. 

Now there wasn't really anywhere they could go. Remy decided that it was best if they met up with Professor Xavier in Fantalia city.

They walked over a field, while Quicksilver was sent ahead to scout the area before they went into it. 

As the herd trotted on, Remy shifted to a more comfortable position on Angel's back. His leg was still hurting like hell, and he felt a little bad about the Clydesdale carrying him, although Angel was one of the strongest of the lot at the moment. 

Remy mused about what they were to do if the Capital Police came back for them again, no doubt with more re-enforcement. So far there were four Clydesdales. Quicksilver, Spyke, Angel and the Rogue. And they were almost taken out by the small police force. If the Police came back again, Remy wasn't sure if they could hold up. They needed to either get to a safe hiding place, or find more Clydesdales to increase power for more battles that were definitely to come.

What's more, he was hungry. It was somewhere halfway through the night and he hadn't had a good meal the entire day, and the wound he had sustained was using up what little energy he had left. 

Quicksilver wandered around in super speed. He had ran up ahead and had gone into a little Texan-looking town, and parked himself beside a few other normal horses outside a bar. It was night, and the place was deserted. All the noise came from inside the brightly-lit bars and saloons, and the few people that passed by didn't notice his silver coat. So he pretty much looked like an average horse. 

The window to the bar was wide open, and he could hear various voices floating out. He could make out several conversations, and he was starting to get impatient when he heard something about a Clydesdale. 

"Hey, can you believe that some mutant managed to steal three Clydesdales? And the news said that he found the second Clydesdale too. The Untouchable one." The voice sounded like it came from a big, burly man.

"Yea… those pesty mutants. Can you believe it? It's about 20 million dollars there! Trust a mutie to pull something like that off." This voice was nasal and sounded like the guy had sucked in a whole lot of helium.

"Whatever. Heard about the new Clydesdales though?" The first voice said. Pietro's ears pricked up. "Nup. What about them?"

The first voice replied, "I'm pretty sure there was one named Avalanche, Clydesdale of the Earth or Land or something, and the other was Toad, I think… heard that one escaped and the other got sold to someone else. Not sure what really happened to which." 

They seemed to have stopped talking about the Clydesdales and Pietro was left to his own thinking. _Lance? Todd? _He looked around and made sure no one was looking before zipping off back to the herd that he had left about a hundred miles away. 

He was zooming off through a jungle he had been through earlier on. He hadn't checked the area out yet, as he had only gone through it without looking around. 

He was around the middle of the rainforest when he saw something bright. He stopped dead in his tracks and peered through the branches and ferns, looking at whatever it was that had caught his attention. 

A small fire surrounded by pebbles and stones sat in the middle of many dark green huts.

The huts seemed to be made of some kind of plant, large leaves pulled together to create a stitched up cabin. There were no windows, only holes at the front to serve as doors. It didn't have to be all too perfect for a roof, as the jungle's dense canopy was already a good natural shelter from the weather. 

It was very quiet when all of a sudden, Pietro heard the shrill neigh of a horse coming from further up at the opposite side of the small village. Then the sound of ropes whipping about, a muffled neigh, then a few voices.

This got Pietro on the alert, and he watched closely as the facing side came to life a little, trees and leaves shaking as if it were alive or something was there. 

Then, some kind of people appeared. They looked like the typical tribesmen, dark tan skin, wearing clothes that weren't all that conservative, and they had white and green dyes and paintings over their chest and face. 

Some of them had spears, and most of them were pulling at a rope. As more men emerged, the other end of the rope was revealed to be tied around the neck of a pale green horse. 

Green.

Pietro recognized the horse as Todd straight away. He wanted to call out to the other Clydesdale, but the other men were around, and although it was a fat chance that the men could catch him, they would probably make it harder to get Todd out. 

It appeared that Todd had not seen him, and the men kept pulling the Clydesdale toward the middle of their village.

As the people and animal neared the fire, Pietro was allowed to get a good look at how Todd turned out.

Yes, it was a pale green, and he had dark swamp green hair, shiny olive green, and his eyes were the same yellow with red pupils as it was before. Pietro also realized that Todd's rear legs were extremely muscular, no doubt one of his mutant characteristics. 

Todd was tied with some kind of vine shackles around his two rear legs, loose enough to let him walk, but making him stumble, and his mouth was muzzled. 

Suddenly one of the men yelled out to the other people in English, but heavy with what was probably his native accent, "We, the tribe of Wangcaga, have caught the Clydesdale of the Swamplands!" 

Pietro raised his brow, _Wangcaga?_

Women and children ran out from the tents, and they started to cheer and crowd around Todd, who seemed to be getting more frightened by the minute. 

Pietro wondered if he should go back to the others and tell them about it or rescue Todd before the strange people did anything weird to him, like boil him in some giant pot and eat him for food or something.

He was about to dash up when he heard the soft snap of a twig behind him.

His ears pricked up and he whirled around silently, to be faced by another horse. No, another Clydesdale.

"Lance?" he said as softly as he could.

End of chapter 10

A/N: :( I don't really like this chapter… I dunno why. It just… not as well-written as I wanted it to be… sighx.. anywayz… ^__^


	12. Cheese

A/N: Yayz!!! Chappie 11!! *smilez* BIG thank u to ALL reviewers!! 

--sylver rain

Chapter 11: Cheese

Avalanche gave Pietro a smile and asked, "Hey, you alright so far?" Lance threw a furtive glance at the scars on Pietro's back, which were still in the process of healing, but were quickly fading.

Pietro nodded quickly and said, "You? I thought you were sold to someone or something like that." 

Lance replied with a smug look, "I gave a tremor before they could put that thing around my neck."

"Could always count on you to not need anyone's help." Pietro said with a smirk. He glanced back at Todd who was getting dragged by the men next to a pole to get tied up to. "How did you know about Todd?"

Lance looked at the frightened green Clydesdale and said, "I heard he managed to escape. So when I got out, I thought he'd go to a place like some swamp or jungle to stay away from humans. I just didn't think there'd be some people in this place, and I'm sure Todd didn't either." 

Pietro nodded. Todd would probably have been terrified after everything that happened, the same as when he himself was turned into a horse. Todd must have came to this place as fast as he could, some place he was comfortable in, to think things through and get used to the fact that he was an animal, not that they hadn't been treated like animals before. But physically, it had to take some getting used to. Walking on four legs wasn't a problem though. It felt like instincts kicked in when Pietro had made his first steps after getting transformed and waking up, and he could walk and run just as well as when he had two legs. 

"How you planning on getting him out?" Lance asked.

Pietro looked back at him with skepticism, "What? I thought _you_ had a plan in mind." 

Lance rolled his eyes, "Hey, I just saw you here and you looked like what you'd be if you were a horse, and I assumed it was you. I wasn't devising any plan, ya know? I thought you'd be coming up with something, like you usually do." 

As confusing as Lance's first statement was, he understood perfectly what the other Clydesdale meant. Somehow, they could just tell who another Clydesdale was, mutant characteristics or not.

Then the other statement settled in. 

"Hey," he snapped, "I _was_ thinking of something until you came by." 

Lance shrugged and said, "So what have you got so far?"

"I was thinking of barging in on their little festival." Pietro replied, looking at the people tying Todd to the pole in the middle of the entire village, probably so that if Todd _did_ manage to get out of his confinement, there was still the chance that the men could catch him before he made it into the thick jungle. 

"Or going back to the rest and getting their help." He finished. 

Lance raised his brow, "The rest? You mean you found the rest?" 

"Well, not only me. There was this mutant called Remy that got me out, then we both found the others." 

Lance nodded slowly, "Ah, I see. So who have we got so far?"

"Warren, Rogue and Daniels."

"Oh. How are they?"

"They're quite alright."

"Quite?"

"Yea," Pietro explained, "You see, some Capital Policemen found us, and we fought back, and now we're all pretty drained.

"So no one's dead?"

"Nope."

"Cool. What are we gonna do now?"

Pietro looked at the Wangcaga tribe as they sat around their fire, Todd close by them. He was looking tired, annoyed and a little scared at getting tied up, and Pietro looked back at Lance, "Well, since you're here, we might as well do this ourselves."

Lance nodded and faced the village.

He grunted and stomped a front hoove, which sent a tremor rumbling toward the tribe. The people started to panic, rushing around like mad people. With all the chaos going on, Pietro ran toward Todd, and untied the rope and shackles in no time at all.

"Pietro?" Todd said in a mixture of relief and bewilderment once the muzzle was taken off.

"Yep, it's me, the great Maximoff. Now get your ass moving." He shoved Todd out into the trees, leaving the people scrambling around in fear, some fleeing to the jungles in hopes of safety.

The rumbling stopped and Lance trotted toward them. 

"Lance?!" Todd said, getting happier by the second.

"It's me, Toddy, now let's get going." 

Pietro went first without super speed, leading the other two to where he calculated the herd would be by this time.

Remy took a big bite out of the fruit in his hands. It wasn't all that energy revitalizing, but fruits were all he could have at the moment. It was probably about 2am already, and the Clydesdales and himself were in need of some rest.

He slid down the trunk of the fruit tree and looked at the rest. Quicksilver was taking quite a long time to scout the area, and Remy was getting more worried about thr Clydesdale as minutes flew by.

The other three Clydesdales were roaming around, eating fruit off trees or grazing. He closed his eyes for a few seconds before hearing one of the Clydesdales neigh.

He opened his eyes and saw the other three trotting toward Quicksilver and two other horses.

His mood brightened a little. Now they had two more additions to the team, which meant more power and less searching.

He walked up to the three who just arrived and got a good look at the new ones.

One was slightly smaller than the others, and was a pale shade of army green with swamp colored hair and yellow eyes. The other was pretty tall and muscular, with a tan sandy coat and dark chestnut brown hair. The ends of his legs were the same color as his hair, as if he had walked through an ankle deep pool of mud, and he had black dusty hooves. 

After his little introduction on who he was, what he was, and what he wanted to do, they settle down again, him sleeping under a tree and the Clydesdales nickering softly to each other.

"Ya sure y'all are ok?" Todd nodded at Rogue, "Well, no one died, so I guess we're fine." He gave a small smile.

"So, what happened before you got out? Are the others alright?" Evan asked urgently. 

"Kitty's still on sedatives…" Todd said quietly, stealing a quick glance at Lance who was close to fuming. 

"Damn that Kor person…" he seethed.

"Kar. His name is Kar." Pietro said, rolling his eyes.

"I don't give a fuck what his name is." Lance snapped, "He's got Kitty unconscious and God knows what happened to the rest."

The rest fell silent, lapsed into deep thoughts about the friends that were still retained in the wizard's castle.

Rogue broke the silence, "Ah think we all should go ta sleep now. Ah mean, we all _do_ need rest." No one argued, and the Clydesdales went under trees or lay on the soft green grass under the many shimmering stars.

Todd lifted head and looked up at the dark sky. The stars were evenly spread out and there were no clouds in sight. The moon was nowhere to be seen too. 

Todd looked at Lance and Pietro who were nearby, "Umn, guys?"

Pietro turned his cerulean eyes up to look at the younger Clydesdale, too lazy to lift his head from the ground, "Yea?"

"You… you think everything will work out cool?"

Lance opened his eyes and lifted his head, "Whyja ask that?" 

Todd shrugged and looked back at the sky, "I dunno. Maybe cuz, I mean, turning into a horse and all… it's all so…"

"Unreal?" Pietro suggested, raising his head.

"Yea. Unreal." Todd sighed, "And the Remy guy was talking about trying to turn us back into who we were before. It's just that, Kar's already won us once. And he could probably do it again. And everything will repeat itself, yo."

Pietro shuddered. Todd was right. There was that chance that Kar would overpower them, as he had already did once, and Pietro didn't really want anything to be repeated. Especially an experience with knights of any kind. 

"Well, there's still that chance of beating him." Lance said, looking up at the glittering stars too. Pietro wasn't sure if the rock-tumbler was speaking the truth or if he was only trying to comfort Todd. 

"Well, say we _do_ have the stuff to beat him this time," Pietro challenged, "It still leaves the issue of even finding Kar's hideout, and even if we _do_ find the asshole's castle, how can we be sure we'd find all the others and make it through without losing anyone? Specially to the humans."

Todd seemed a little more stressed out than before, but all Lance did was shrug and say, "Well, then. Too bad for us." 

At that, Todd seemed to be in temporary shock while Pietro rolled his eyes and lay his head back down to the ground, "Well, thanks for the boost in confidence." He mumbled.

Lance smiled and said, "Well, still got each other so far. Gotta be happy for that."

Todd was out of his traumatism and teased the older Clydesdale, "Cheesy…" Lance grunted and lay his head down, trying to fall asleep.

Todd continued looking up at the stars, eyes and imagination running wild.

"Cheesy… Cheese… Is it me or do those stars over there look like some kinda cheese constellation?"

Lance said without opening his eyes, "Shuddup Todd."

Silence reigned for a moment or two before Todd shattered it again.

"I'm hungry, yo."

End of chapter 11

A/N: Muahahahahaz!!! What are u all to do now?? REVIEW!! ^__^


	13. They Some Wierd People

A/N: Haharz… Thank u ALL for the reviews!! Umnz, if I've got Remy's accent wrong, IT"S NOT MY FAULT!!! :( I suck at them.. so yerz.. 

Repliez – 

Chrissie: Lolz!! Haha.. got the funny mental picture in my head now.. toddy bouncin here and there.. XD.. Logan as a centaur?? I thought about it, but wouldn't the humans be relly scared and try to kill him or something? :( But good idea all the same… (it has to be good cuz I actually considered it… ^__^)

Muffinelf: *blushes*.. ^__^ thanx for the comments… and those are some pretty good suggestions u gave!! Hmm, the thing abt jean, yes, it actually came across my mind b4, but I had something else in mind, like something happens and they ALL can talk? I dunno it may seem like a pretty dumb idea..bt Nari (HI NARI!! ^__^) had emailed me once and said that remy seemed pretty clueless abt the whole thing cuz he ahs no idea how to communicate wid them.. and abt the todd thing? I thought abt usuing cyclops first, bt since u gave a good reason for Toddy, I'll try and do what u proposed somewhere in a near-future chappie!! Ookiez?? ^__________^

Raliena: Alritez!! From the beginning, I've already got ideas for the new recruits! So yerz!! :D

-- sylver rain

****

The Clydesdales

Chapter 12: They Some Weird People

Remy was feeling _very_ bad for making Angel carry him. But it just couldn't be helped. His wound was fine so far and was healing well, and it would probably be about a few weeks before he could walk by himself. 

The herd made its way through a valley using the directions Remy gave. He knew a friend there, also a mutant, and he had told her before about the Clydesdales actually being mutants.

The Clydesdales ate the lush green grass every now and then as they went along, and the air was cool and pleasant. Soon, some sort of wooden fencing could be seen further up ahead, and as the herd kept going, the fencing was revealed to be part of a large farm.

When they were about thirty meters away, a woman of about 50 years old came out and flashed a big smile. She was short and plump, with shining eyes and a 'grandmotherly' look about her. She ran as fast as her short legs could carry her, and Remy jumped off Angel to greet her.

"Darling! It's so good to see you again!" The old woman said in a high, cheery voice as she threw her stout self at Remy, who was about two heads taller than her, squeezing out the air from his lungs.

"Myra…" Remy squeaked, "Need air…" Myra jumped off and said, "Sorry Remy boy, but I've missed you so much!! OH! What happen to your leg?! Don't tell me you've been playing with those naughty little boys who keep trying to play rough in the Capital again…"

"Myra madame," Remy sighed, shaking his head, "Dose naughty little boys were de police..." But Myra didn't seem to have heard him.

"…or was it those sweet little cats you were chasing at the forest over there long time ago when you came over? Hmm… come to think about it, those cats must have been real strong to have almost sliced your arms off… But who asked you to harass them in the first place?"

"Myra, dose were forest panthers and Remy wasn't chasing dem. Remy was _running_ from dem cuz they were harassing _me_…"

"Oh come one, darling! Don't tell me what it _wasn't_, tell me what it _is_!" 

"Well, Myra, you see, those naughty little boys from the capital came after me and _shot_ me."

"My my, children these days… playing with toys they shouldn't even be touching! What kind of parents do they have?"

"I…"

"Oh! We have to fix up that leg of your now, mustn't we? Harold!" she yelled toward the house.

"Old Harold? He's back?" Remy looked at the timber house. "I thought he was off to make some big money or something?"

"Harold!" she turned back and smiled, "Well, a career in cauliflower-picking isn't really all that profitable, my boy. Harold!! HAROLD! GET YOUR SCRAWNY BUM OUT HERE!!"

A bang and crash sounded from the house and a tall and skinny man of about 55 years of age flung the door open, "Wut do ya want, Myra? The lizards are at it agin and I don't wanna be around ta watch them compete fer yer pancakes. What's more, them pancakes were fer ME…"

"HAROLD! Harold, darlin', look who's here?" Myra said while gesturing at Remy.

"Boy? It IS you!" Harold ran up and started ruffling Remy's hair. 

"Yea, it's me Old Harold." Remy grinned.

"Why, yer still as scrawny as before! Isn't he, Myra?"

Myra nodded and said, "Yes. I remember telling you to eat good food, but you always run off and play instead, dontcha?"

"Lookit him." Harold held up Remy's arm, "The boy's like a bamboo stick that just got rolled over by an eighteen-wheeler! We better start puttin' some meat in him."  
"Don't you go talking too much now, Harold." Myra said, "You ain't exactly a meatloaf yourself."

Remy was laughing at the couple's usual antics as they chatted on.

All the while, the Clydesdales were standing by and staring at the spectacle with amusement.

"Right…" Lance said.

"They some weird people, yo." Todd added.

Remy suddenly turned around and remembered they were there. "Harold, Myra! These are the Clydesdales Remy's been talking about."

Harold and Myra looked at the Clydesdales.

"Well, wouldja lookit that." Harold said.

"Wow!! Remy, darling, they're beautiful!!" She rushed up to Todd and started pinching Todd's cheek.

"Ah!! Get away from me!" Todd shrieked, backing off. A pity Myra had no idea what he just said, and the other Clydesdales laughed.

"Why, aren't you just adorable!!" she fawned, ruffling up Todd's hair at the same time.

"Get her away from me, yo!" Todd tried running behind Spyke.

Harold grinned, "The mystical Clydesdales. Well I'll be. C'mon in!" He gestured toward the large plot of land around the house that was encircled by the wooden fencing. 

The Clydesdales made their way through the wide gates and into the field, which was full of fresh green grass and other stuff you'd usually see on a farm.

Spyke, Angle, and Rogue grazed around in the meadow while Todd, Pietro and Lance explored the farm.

"Wow! They got their own lagoon!" Todd exclaimed.

"It's a lake, you dimwit." Lance said.

"You idiots, it's a pond! Can't you guys tell? It's too freakin' small to be a lake and it's definitely too small to be a _lagoon_ Todd." Pietro said with a hint of skepticism in his voice. 

"Whatever." Lance rolled his eyes.

Todd said in an undercover-cop style, "I'm goin' in."

The green Clydesdale whooped and leapt in, "BANZAI!!!" A small splash and Todd was paddling around in the pool.

"Can horses swim?" Lance mused.

"Apparently, yes." Pietro said as he watched Todd.

Rogue wandered off on her own out a small gate and into a small forest. Night was coming soon, but she didn't really care. So the woods were quite dark, but she could pretty much make out her way through.

She was alone. Alone was good. Danger was usually around when someone is alone, especially in dark, quiet forests. But it didn't matter at all to her right now. She liked being alone. 

Throughout the entire day, she had been frequently tagging along behind the herd. She kept as far away from the group as possible. Being who she is, it's dangerous to be close to anyone. To them, and to herself. 

Now that she was clothes-less, the chance of her absorbing another's powers or memories were a lot higher, and the only way to prevent that was to keep away. 

She roamed into the forest. Now she was alone, and there was nothing to worry about. No one was near and no one held the risk getting drained by her, so she was free to do whatever she wanted.

The air had a very 'foresty' scent, and she took it in with one breath.

Then she heard a rustle.

She spun around – well, more like balanced on her rear legs and twirled around, because it is pretty difficult to spin around on four legs – and her eyes darted around for any movement.

She could see none, and she hoped desperately that it was a squirrel or something.

She turned around to go back to the farm when she was greeted with a pair of yellow eyes. 

"Ahh!" She nearly fell back, but looked up to see a horse.

Yellow demon eyes and a dark, navy blue coat, with a spaded tail twirling around nervously.

"Kurt?"

End of Chapter 12

A/N: Oh yea everyone!! Nightcrawler's back!! ^_____^


	14. We Can Talk!

A/N: Ok… y'all may not like this chappie… cuz I don't. :P

Repliez – 

Chrissie: You have NO idea how much ur review just made my day… I'm feeling all bouncy now!! How can u say it's not a good review?? I lurved it!! :D

-- sylver rain

****

The Clydesdales

Chapter 13: We Can Talk!

Rogue wanted to run up to her sibling and envelop him in a hug. But there were two little problems she had.

One, her mutant powers say no.

Two, she's standing on her hands.

"Kurt! Are yah alraght? Where were yah all this while?" Rogue ran up to Nightcrawler. Kurt gave a weak smile, "I vas followving you all."

"Yah what?!" Rogue gaped. "Why tha hell didn't yah show yahself??" 

"Well, I needed to see if zis Remy guy was trustvorthy, and so far, he's fine." 

"Gawd, Kurt. Yah got me worried all tha time. How are yah? Yah okay?"

Kurt laughed and replied, "Yea yea, I'm okay. I'm just tired of transporting continuously to follow you all." Rogue smiled, "Well, I'm glad yah're alraght. C'mon, let's go talk to tha others."

Kurt nodded and followed his sister into the farm.

Todd was letting himself air-dry in the wind as he sat under the large moon. The cool night breeze made his wet skin colder, but he didn't really care. 

He was getting more worried as time slipped by, and he wondered how the others were doing in Kar's castle.

Kar. Todd hated the wizard ever since he saw the man. He couldn't really remember much about Kar's face, but it had "Mutants don't deserve to be called humans" written all over it.

Todd heard something move behind him and whipped his head around. 

Remy.

"Hey. Enjoying de moon?"

Todd would have said something along the lines of "I wish, yo." if it hadn't been for this stupid can't-speak thing.

Remy just continued, "Remy used to look at de moon a lot."

This got Todd looking up at the crescent shape floating up there in the dark sky. "Me too…" He said, although he knew Remy couldn't hear him.

"Strange why many people don pay attention to it. De most everyone says is dat it gives light at night. But dey don notice how beautiful it is." Remy kept gazing up at the white frame, like someone was up there flashing his or her smile at them.

"I know…" Todd said to himself again.

"Looks like yer scared or something. Is it Kar?" Remy turned and looked at the Clydesdale.

Todd nodded and said to himself again, "Gee, how did you guess."

He waited for Remy to say something else but all that followed was silence. He turned toward the mutant, and raised a brow.

Remy was staring back at Todd, gaping.

"What?" Todd said, although he didn't think Remy would hear.

"You… you…"

"What?"

"Can't you hear?"

"Hear what?"

"We're having a freakin conversation!"

"Yea, so?" 

Then Todd realized what was going on, "I can talk, yo!"

Remy smiled and nodded, "Thought you should know."

"How come? I don't get it…" Todd mused to himself, "Why would Kar do that?" 

Remy thought for a while, then finally shrugged, "Dunno." Todd was still deep in thought, so Remy said, "Well, since you can talk, Remy's pretty sure the rest can."

Todd looked up and smiled, "Hey, yea! Let's go talk to them, yo!"

Remy calmed the Clydesdale down and said, "But first thing's first. Remy still don know yer name."

Todd sat back down and chirped, "Todd. Umn, or Toad."

Remy smiled, "Ok Todd. And can you tell Remy what happened before all dis? Remy really need to know…"

Todd was sullen again, but replied softly, "We... we got caught."

"Who is de 'we'?"

"All of us, and some other mutants. Ya see, Kar uses mutants as experiments, and turn them into animals and other stuff, dunno why. Most of them died, and we formed this group of mutants that wanna stop him, and we invaded his Castle thing to stop him."

"Oh…"

"Yea, but then we didn't really make it. He won and caught us, I think it was with his magic or something, and then he used _us_ as his lab rats and put some kinda spell on us, and so far, we're his first experiments that worked."

Remy felt sick, hearing about humans, a wizard no less, experimenting on mutants. And the worse part was hearing that most of them died. "Can you remember where de Castle is?"

Todd shook his head, "Nup… And the rest can't either. Lance thinks- "

"Lance? That's Avalanche, right?"

"Yea… he thinks the Kar dude wiped out our minds."

"Oh, well, Remy not surprised if he did."

"Yea… Hey! You wanna go talk to the others now?!" Remy could tell that Todd obviously didn't want to talk about the subject anymore, so he nodded and followed the bouncing Clydesdale back to the barn.

"We can talk yo!" Todd called out as he leapt through the barn doors.

"And you even _talk_ cute!!" Myra ran up to him and hugged him.

"Argh!!" Todd tried to squeeze out of her tight grasp but to no avail.

The other Clydesdales were laughing, and Remy turned to them. Obviously, they had all discovered their new ability to communicate with humans, but he realized there was something else new in the group.

"Nightcrawler?"

The Demon Clydesdale looked at him, "Umn… Hi?"

"How did you get here?"

The paint mare walked up, "He's been following us all tha while." Her voice was thick with a southern accent, and she seemed like someone not many people would fool with.

"Oh, why?"

Nightcrawler explained what happened, and Remy was surprised at first, but he understood the Clydesdale's reasons for not trusting him.

"And you're de Rogue, right?" He turned to the pinto. What's your powers? It can't be super speed."

She paused for a while, "Ah… Ah can absorb people's memories, and for mutants, their powers."

"Oh." Remy nodded, "Well, Todd here told me about what happened before, and that you guys can't remember a thing about where Kar's castle is, right Todd?"

"Ack!!" Todd yelped, still trying to squirm his way out of Myra's hug.

"Well, I still think the Kor guy wiped our memory out." The dun-colored mustang spoke up. His voice sounded like it belonged to a leader's, and Remy wouldn't be surprised if the Clydesdale _was_ in charge. But there was also traces of a hot temper there.

"Kar, Lance. It's KAR." Quicksilver spoke up. A fast talker, no doubt quick at retorts.

"But Alvers does have a point." Spyke said.

"No one disagreed with Lance in the first place." Quicksilver pointed out.

"I know… I just… Shuddup Maximoff."

"Okay, okay. Now how bout y'all go trot of to bed." Harold said. "Myra'll cook you some pancakes in the morning."

"Horses don't eat pancakes, you old fool." Myra said.

"They do! Remember little Chelsea? I gave that horse some pancakes and she seemed fine after that."

"Well, that's probably the reason why she died the next day!"

"She died?"

"Alright, alright. Let's _all_ got to sleep." Remy said, as he limped toward the barn doors, followed by Harold and Myra.

"You all get some rest. We'll stay here a while tomorrow, but Remy think we may have to get moving soon."

End of chapter 13

A/N: Argh!! I don't like this chapter. I wanted Toddy to kinda think to himself about what happened last time they got caught, but I also wanted them to start being able to talk to Remy, cuz he needs to know stuff… :P So I came up with this stupid thing!! And Nightie's re-appearance was so… abrupt?? AHHHHHH!!!!!!!!! And no, I don't know what's up with the pancakes…


	15. Time To Go

A/N: I feel like eating some chocolates now… I dunno why.. o.O

Repliez – 

Raliena: Haha, don't mention it.. the talk thing? I have something else in mind.. may seem pretty stupid, but u gotta wait for future chappiez to hear bout it..

Me: My goshiez.. did I say something abt Kitty being some kinda ghost Clydesdale in previous chapters or something?? Cuz I was planning on making Kitty something like 'Th Ghost Clydesdale' and then u came up with it!! O.O whaoz.. bt I hadn't thought of the white paint thinggy… so yerz, I'll prolly use that!! Thanx! And abt her color and the chestnut thing, Nari (go read her stuff!! It's great!!) who's some kinda horse expert, came up with hell kewl colors abt chestnut and all that!! So I hafta say, u are GOOD.. umn, the talking thing? like I've said before, I've got something in mind bt u hafta wait for future chappiez so.. ^__^ thanx for the great review and all the cool ideas!! And I will be bringing some of the new recruits in and maybe even Storm.. so yerz..

Chrissie: awz… thanx for the compliments.. ^__^ and damn right, u sure know how to make peepz happy!! :D Happy Easter to u too!! (a bit late, but anywayz…) ^____^

Psyco: thank u.. thank u… :D

-- sylver rain

****

The Clydesdales

Chapter 14: Time To Go

"Do all horses sleep while standing up?" Lance stumbled out of the barn and greeted the fresh air and morning sun. 

"I dunno, yo." But I slept lying down. Hell, the hay was good." Todd trotted out, and ran off to find the other Clydesdales who were helping Myra with the farm.

"Well, someone's a morning person…" Lance grumbled. He took a drink from a water trough, before going off to find Todd and the others.

He walked into the fenced up field at the back, and everywhere, there were rows and rows of all types of vegetable. Lance stared in wonder. He had never remembered seeing any of them the night before.

He walked further in, and he saw the other Clydesdales helping around in a barren piece of land. Kurt was teleporting large and heavy farm material wherever Myra wanted him to. Evan was sticking long spikes into the ground for certain rows. Rogue was pulling out whatever weed she finds. Angel was standing by as if waiting for a command from Myra. Pietro was going too fast for Lance to see what he was doing, and Todd was…

Talking to a cow?

"Todd! What the hell are you doing?" Lance called out while walking over to the younger Clydesdale. 

"Shhh!!! Can't you see? I'm trying to speak with Ms Belle here." 

"I don't wanna know…" Lance mumbled as he turned back to the rest of the Clydesdales. It appeared that they've stopped whatever they were doing, and Myra was on her knees in front of the rows of seeds that had just been planted. She placed her hands on the ground and closed her eyes.

Suddenly, sprouts shot up from the newly planted rows, and soon the plants were budding and began to grow larger. Lance watched in amazement as the vegetables grew at a faster rate. Cabbages bloomed and tomato plants snaked up the spikes placed near it. The other plants were growing at a similar rate.

Angel suddenly took off with a hose in his mouth, and once he was above the plants, the hose let out a spray of water, showering the plants.

By now, the vegetables were a very juicy size, and Myra pulled her hands from the ground, and the vegetables stopped growing. 

"So that's your powers, yo!" Todd said proudly, as if he had just solved the world's toughest case. 

"No, doh." Lance said, earning a playful glare from Todd.

"Yep, plant growth manipulation!" Myra said, wiping the sweat from her forehead. 

"MYRA!" Harold's voice sounded from the house, "Where are them pancakes!?"

"They're in the kitchen! On the table!" Myra called back.

"No, they aren't!" 

"Yes! I put them there for you!" Myra yelled.

"Well, they ain't – Why, ya stupid lizards! I'll kill you two salamanders if it's the last thing I do!!"

Crashes and bangs rang from the house, and the Clydesdales just stood there and stared.

"Oh, we have a couple of some kinda lizard in the house." Myra explained, "And Old Harold claims that they always eat the pancakes I make for him." She lowered her voice, "But I reckon that he just wants me to make more."

The Clydesdales were still silent, until Pietro broke it by saying, "Lizards eat pancakes?"

"In this place, anything's possible, yo." Todd replied.

The Clydesdales were grazing around in the meadow nearby. Remy walked in carrying a news-com.

"Two more Clydesdales."

"Who?" Lance asked.

"Umn… Pyro and Frost."

"St John and Bobby!" Rogue exclaimed.

"Isn't it supposed to be Iceman instead of Frost?" Evan asked.

Remy shrugged, "Kar probably issued de name. Remy think people would get a little suspicious if a Clydesdale was named Iceman."

Evan nodded and Kurt spoke up, "So ve're gonna leave now?" 

" 'fraid so." Remy sighed, "As much as Remy don't wanna go, we have to find dose two and get moving."

The Clydesdales nodded and got ready to leave.

Packed with supplies, the Clydesdales and Remy were at the entrance of the gate. 

"Oh, Darling. I'm gonna miss you!" Myra sobbed, pulling Remy in a tight hug and kissing his cheek. 

"Remy miss you too." Remy hugged her back.

"Aye, boy. Take care of yerself, ya hear?" Harold mussed his hair, "And don't you forget to take things like a man." Harold sniffed and wiped the little tears back, "You gotta be tough out there, *sniff*, just like Old Harold here!" He sobbed and suddenly burst into tears and hugged Remy, "I'm gonna miss you, boy!!!" 

Myra rolled her eyes. "Alright now, Darling. Take care, you hear? We'll see you again soon!"

Remy smiled and nodded, "Remy will come back again!"

As Todd was getting glomped by Myra, Harold pulled Remy aside, "Boy, I've got something I think you may need." He pulled out a small metal device. It was a square ring with a line running around the inner side in the hole, and had a handle sticking out from one of the square ring's side. "See this?" 

Remy nodded.

Harold pressed a button on the contraption, and the line in the inner sides of the ring lit up in a bright red, and the next second, a red screen slid down from one side, so now device looked like a square with a red screen in the middle, and a handle sticking out. 

"What's this?" Remy asked.

"This red light here in the middle," Harold pointed at the red translucent screen, "It can cut through anything in a jiffy, unlike that laser blade thing of yours. That thing takes ages to cut through those collars you were talkin' about. This baby," He jiggled the device, "A laser vise, you just clamp it over that pesky collar and press this little button, and hooo, boy, you've got yourself a broken collar!" 

"Whoa… you made it yourself?!"

"Yep, and hey! Just remember not to touch the screen! You wanna see what happens when ya do?" Remy nodded. "Well…" Harold looked around and picked up a short metal pole, an inch in diameter. "Now, watch this." He held the laser vise so that the screen was facing up, and he dropped the pole through.

As the pole touched the glowing red screen, it melted and came out from the other side in a thick liquid form. This all happened in a second, and the metal that was once a pole was now a puddle of mecury-like liquid on the ground between them.

Harold switched the laser vise off and passed it to Remy, "Wow…" Remy managed to utter, "Thank, Harold!"

"Anytime, boy." Harold smiled.

They ended their goodbyes and went their separate ways, and Harold and Myra stood at the gates, waving until the Remy and the Clydesdales were out of sight.

"Bless that child." Myra sighed, "I hope he accomplishes whatever he sets out to do."

End of chapter 14

A/N: Sigh, sigh, sigh… and did I mention Sigh? 


	16. We Are Not Lost

A/N: Wah… here's another chappie.. And thanx for the reviews peepz!! Thank u so much! Made me all happy.. ^__^ Sorrie, but no new Clydes in this chpt!! :( And Chrissie, that review seriously got me all hyper!! XD

-- sylver rain

****

The Clydesdales

Chapter 15: We Are Not Lost

"We are not lost." Remy argued as the herd trotted on in the desert. He turned the map around and squinted at it, then turned it around again.

They kept walking on through the boiling desert in silence, as the glaring sun shone down upon them.

"You sure were not lost, yo?" Todd asked suddenly.

"We are _not_ lost." Remy seethed for the umpteenth time. He turned the map upside down again.

The herd kept going, and soon they were all getting tired. Lance piped up, "Man, you _sure_ we're not lost?"

"NO! We are not lost!!"

Pietro grunted, "Gambit! We've been walking around in the searing heat of this natural oven for over two hours already and apparently the fucking landmarks just aren't in the mood to show themselves. I THINK WE'RE LOST."

Remy glared at Quicksilver and scrunched the map up, then shove it into his pocket, "I hate reading maps." He mumbled.

The Clydesdales stared at him.

"You WHAT?" Evan yelled.

"That's all yah can say?!" Rogue would have torn her hair out if it weren't for those darn hooves.

Pietro gave him the longer version, "You led us through an entire massive destitute and not to mention burning and bone-dry desert, when we've used up almost all our food and water, wasting all our life-preserving energy and dehydrating us as we promenaded along, only to get lost and all you can say is 'I hate reading maps'?! You could've told us, I dunno, TWO HOURS EARLIER?!"

"It's not Remy's fault you guys don't have hands to hold them!" Remy snapped. 

"I knew it, yo. We shoulda stuck to the first plan and just let Speedy scout the place out first. But Mr. Map-reader here wants to prove that he had stupid map-reading skills!" Todd glared at Remy.

"Well, Remy won't hafta prove myself if Rocky here din make the stupid bet that Remy can't!" Remy snarled back, "So it's Lance's fault!"

"No it isn't!" Lance growled, "And since you brought it up, I won the bet!" He stuck his tongue out at Remy, who did the same back.

Todd suddenly said, "Ya know, this whole mess is actually Kar's fault! If he hadn't turned us all into horses, we would have hands and can hold the maps ourselves, yo!"

"Ve vouldn't even _be_ in zis desert in the first place if Kar hadn't turned us into horses." Kurt muttered. Todd pondered for a moment, "Good point yo."

"Pietro, you still got enough energy left to scout the area?" Lance asked. 

"Well Lance, have _you_ got enough energy to bury us all alive?" Pietro asked back, "If you guys are all beat, so am I. I'll probably be able to run for two miles before I waste out."

"We're doomed." Warren mumbled under his breath. 

"Hey! Look at those tracks, yo!" Todd chirped. 

The herd surveyed the scene and true enough, they were tracks. "They look like… horse tracks!" Evan cried happily.

"Yea! We just follow them and we may come across some desert village or somethin'!" Todd cheered.

Pietro looked at the tracks closely, then snorted, "Those are _our_ tracks, you idiot!" 

"Hey, yea! Zhose _are_ our tracks…" Kurt agreed.

"We've been walking around in circles!" Pietro cried.

"Told you we're doomed." Warren said.

"Angel, can you fly up for a short while and scan the area? Just see if there's any village or whatever in sight." Remy asked. Warren wearily took off, only to come back down shaking his head, "All I saw was sand, sand and sand."

"Kurt, please tell me you can still teleport." Evan asked. 

"All of you? Vell, if you guys didn't keep making me teleport you all at the start of zis journey, I could still have had some energy left." Kurt replied, "And even if I _did_ teleport you, where do we go?" 

"We're gonna die and get eaten!" Todd suddenly yelped. Everyone turned and looked at him.

"What makes yah think that?" Rogue asked.

"Vultures!"

They looked up and sure enough, about a dozen vultures were circling overhead. 

"ARGH! STUPID BIRDS!" Evan screamed, shooting up at the vultures with his spikes. The herd stared at him as he ran around, sending his thorn-like bullets flying.

"Ha. Knew he'd be the first to lose it." Pietro said.

"At least we get some food." Remy said, watching as dead vultures rain down around them.

"You mean, _you_ get food. We're horses, for pete's sake! We don't eat meat!" Lance was close to yelling. 

"It's not Remy's fault y'all are herbivores, so quit screaming!" Remy snapped back.

"Once again, it's Kar's fault." Todd said. 

They set off once again, this time, with a bag full of dead vultures and no idea as to where they're going, and soon some of them got delusional. 

"A SWAMP!!" Todd screamed at the top of his lungs, and he started hopping toward it. 

"What swamp?" Warren stared at the empty space Todd was jumping to.

"Todd! Get back! It's just a mirage!" Pietro yelled, but Todd was too hysterical to listen. 

"Mud! Wonderful mud!" Todd squealed, "Oh, glorious mud!"

The herd stared as Todd squirmed around in a pool of sand. "Todd, get out of there. You're only gonna tire yourself out." Lance said.

"Mud mud mud!!!" Todd sang as he swam around in the sand.

"Get out! Yah getting sand on everyone!" Rogue yelled.

"No, vait!" Kurt said, "I felt vater!"

"It's probably just another mirage." Evan said.

"Don't be an idiot." Lance said, "You can't feel mirages, can you?"

The herd stared at Todd, and it seemed like Todd was squirming so much that he was practically digging into the sand, and there seemed to be water spurting out from it. 

"WATER!" Pietro yelled, dashing toward Todd and digging at super speed.

The rest of the herd joined, and soon they were all drinking deeply from a small pool of water. 

"Wow, that was good." Rogue said. The water was pretty much gone, and all that was left was a patch of wet sand that was quickly drying up. 

"So where do we go now?" Warren asked the rest.

No one answered, as no one had a clue as to what to do now and which direction to take.

Without any warning, a short dark skin man jumped out from behind a sand dune, followed by about thirty more. 

"What the hell?" Remy said as the small men surrounded him and the herd. 

The man they first saw came up to Remy and started speaking in some kind of language. Remy stood there, staring at the small man in confusion. 

When Remy didn't answer, the small man got angry and started poking at Remy with the blunt end of a long spear he had been holding. Then the man started saying something to the rest of the small men, who ran forward and started jabbing their spears at the Clydesdales, forcing them to move.

"Where the hell are they taking us?" Evan whispered to Kurt.

End of Chapter 15

A/N: Ok, that was a pretty lame chapter, but oh well…


	17. Caught

A/N: Doo dee doo dee doo dum… ^__^ Oh hey! Keep the reviews coming in!! I realized that it made a sudden drop in statistics!! :( I need reviews!!!!!!

-- sylver_rain

The Clydesdales

Chapter 16: Caught

The Clydesdales had been walking for hours now with no idea as to where they were being led. The strange men had put some sort of strong rope around their necks that linked them all together and had been silent throughout the entire journey, and they must have traveled a few miles already. They were all tired but it was obvious that Remy had been undergoing the most pain, especially since his wound hadn't fully recovered yet and his body was probably using two times its energy to keep moving. His hands were tied behind his back by the little men, probably because the men thought he may pull some stunt.

Remy had tried making conversation with them at the start, asking them questions like who they were, where they were going, and why. But the dwarf-like men said not a word, and so they all had made the long tiring journey in silence.

Todd sighed. As much as it was cool that they could talk to each other in English, they just couldn't take the chance of speaking in front of their self-proclaimed captors. Their looks were suspicious enough, and talking in anything else but horse language would just make things worse. 

It was dark now and still nothing was to be seen. Todd was starting to get very tired and no doubt the others were too. It was then he spotted something, or more like the top of something, peeking out from over a large sand dune. It looked like the top of a tree, which means more trees, which means an oasis, which means some sort of civilization! Todd was about to yelp out the news but remembered the speaking problem, so he kept silent until they reached wherever they were to be taken to.

Although it was only about half an hour, the grueling journey over the large sand dune (it was a _very_ large sand dune) seemed to take forever, and Todd thought he was going to pass out anytime soon. But whatever was behind the sand dune was now in sight, and so all the Clydesdales got a good look at it.

Remy and the Clydesdales took in the surroundings. It was like any other typical oasis with a nice large water hole right in the middle and layers of palm trees surrounding it. So, we got the trees, the water, but no civilization. Todd's hopes for a nice long rest fell, but they could at least get a drink now. 

Todd wasn't as desperate for a drink as the others. Apparently he has some kind of ability to disallow too much loss of water, and instead of the damp skin he usually had, now his skin was very dry, preserving as much fluid in his body as it possibly could. Probably a mutant trait of his. 

He joined the others at the drinking hole and took in his fill, and he was about to flop down onto the ground when one of the strange men poked him with the blunt end of a spear, speaking in the strange language they spoke. 

"Awww man…" Todd mumbled. The man looked at him in surprise. Todd suddenly realized his mistake and tried to cover it up by grunting the way horses do. The man didn't seem all that convinced first, but decided that it was probably his imagination.

Todd sighed. _Close call…_ he thought to himself. He was quite surprised that the small men had made the whole trip without a drip of water themselves. What's more, they didn't seem tired at all, and looked as normal as when he had first seen them.

Todd prepared himself for another long walk but the pygmy men stopped them instead of starting another grueling journey. The Clydesdales stared around at the empty space in front of them. All they could see was sand. They stared at the dwarf-like men, waiting to see what they were going to do.

The assumed leader of the group stepped up and starting calling out in their strange language. Then he stomped on the ground a certain number of times in a certain beat.

Silence was all that greeted them next, but after a few seconds, they heard a faint moan. Todd wasn't sure but he had thought he saw the sand move for a second. He peered closer at it, and was about to tell himself it was just his imagination when the sand started to move again for real. 

A large flat plane lifted up, not by mechanical means, as it was made of some sort of wood. It looked heavy and was lifted up with the help of four strong wooden poles, so instead of opening the way a trapdoor would, it was lifted up by the four poles, and it definitely wasn't a push-button or pull-lever type of contraption. 

The pygmy men led them down the steep stairway. The steps were made of sand itself, but it wasn't the soft type where you're feet would sink into. It was hard, almost as hard as normal ground itself. They probably used sand and some type of sticky liquid that hardened when left to dry to make the steps. 

As Todd went down, he realized that it was extremely difficult to go down steps when you had four legs. Going up was not a problem. Going down just gave him the feeling that he was going to fall forward. 

After the tedious climb down the stairs, the Clydesdales could finally concentrate on their surroundings, not that there was anything to look at. 

It was a large chamber, cave like, and made of sand. The same sticky liquid used to make the stairs was probably used to keep the ceiling up. The walls were a little weaker than the ceiling and stairs, as they were the real hard soil under the desert sand, and could hold up without the sticky liquid thing. The ground was still soft sand, and the Clydesdales saw that the door they had walked through had been opened up manually. More pygmy men were there, pulling a rope that was probably connected to the poles of the door entrance in some way or another, which meant that if the men had let go of the rope while the Clydesdales were under it, the door would have fallen and crushed someone. Todd felt a little uneasy that someone could have died moments ago just because of the slip of someone else's grip.

They entered into a cave with fire-lit torches at the sides to light the way. They walked down the passageway, passing other passages that branched off to other chambers. Todd took a peek at most of them. Some were just more passages branching off, some were like motels, housing more dwarf-like people, and some were still in the process of becoming a chamber, with small men digging and hacking at hard sand. Soon they came to another chamber. Todd realized that he hadn't seen any doors to any of the chambers yet.

They went into the chamber, and it was a lot larger than the previous one. But what got them staring was how grand it was.

With huge patterned torches hanging from the ceiling and blazing high above them, and walls covered with carpets of all different colors, shapes and patterns, the chamber was huge and well-decorated, as if it was the most important room in the entire underground city. 

Before them was a single large throne, and sitting on it was also a dwarf-like man, obviously the King, and he was watching passively as the Clydesdales and Remy was brought before him. Remy was pushed to his knees on the ground. He winced in pain from the impact, but he felt his legs relax a little. 

The leader of the group talked to the King in their native tongue and Remy was getting more nervous as the seconds went by. All he heard was blabber and he hated it when he couldn't understand someone.

[A/N: Ok, I'll let u guys see how the convo between the leader and the King…]

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King: Kanwa, who are these men?

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Leader/ Kanwa: Sire, we found them near the Canjap waterhole. I think they… finished all the water. 

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King: *raises an eyebrow* All of it?

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Kanwa: All, Sire. 

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King: *strokes beard* Hmm… they must have been pretty thirsty to finish an entire pond, Kanwa.

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Kanwa: I think they were, Sire. They used up one of the Kingdom's main water sources. We have taken them captive. What would you like to do with them?

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King: I see the animals look very… peculiar. Are they horses?

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Kanwa: Perhaps, Sire. Unless they are like the Fire god?

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King: Yes, the thought has crossed my mind. Let us ask their owner. What is his name?

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Kanwa: We have not asked yet. 

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King: Well, let's find out.

End of Chapter 16

A/N: Sorry… got a bit lazy and decided to go into script mode. That was a pretty sucky ending too, huh? Ok… let's just see what happens next week…


	18. The Sand Kingdom

A/N: Guyz… so sorrie.. haven't updated in quite a while! (Not that anyone misses it.. -.-) I've been separated from my darling comp cuz a certain sibling of mine happens to need it for the entire week.. :( Anyhooz… here's another chappie, and pple!! I need more reviews!! 

And a certain couple of reviewers *koff Chrissie, Raliena, koff* happen to be so smart pple and guessed that pyro would be next, which is true! But I'm sure EVERYONE should kinda know that already… And to all those who need replies, I shalt proceed to do so now…

Repliez –

Nari ~ Yay!! U finally reviewed!! And wait for scotty!!!!

Me ~ No.. so sorrie.. not Storm's tribe.. They're a little too… short. o.O Hmm.. abt this chappie.. dunno if u'll find it draggy.. bt it can't be helped *sighs*. It's kinda building up to the story plot and all.. so yerz.. ^__^

-- sylver rain

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The Clydesdales

Chapter 17: The Sand Kingdom

Remy was just getting comfortable on the ground when one of the guards pushed him from the back, and having his hands tied behind him, he fell forward with nothing to cushion him. He twisted so he fell on his shoulder, and he winced painfully as he managed to pull himself up without the help of his upper limbs, which was quite a tortuous task. 

"Who are you and what is your name, young man?" The King suddenly spoke. Apparently, the King sounded a lot more good-natured then Remy had expected, and nothing like his own men. 

"A wanderer, your majesty, and my name is Gambit." Remy replied. He's been in front of many Kings before, usually because he was in trouble for some reason or another, but still, he had learnt how to act in front of them – what to say to keep them happy and what not to say to avoid them getting pissed. 

"A wanderer, you say?" The King asked with the wisely voice he held. Remy nodded. The Kind continued, "Well wanderer, welcome to the Sand Kingdom. And what, may I ask, are all these horses for?"

"Gambit sell them to people, your majesty." Remy lied through his teeth. But he had spent a lot of his life lying, so he was pretty good at it. 

"Really?" The King raised a brow, "And in a desert?"

Remy said the first thing that came in mind, "We got lost, sire." At least this time he wasn't lying.

"Well, Gambit, the middle of a wasteland is quite a long way to get off-track, don't you think?"

Remy thought fast, "We were travelling over a small part of de land when dis guy here," he pointed at the Clydesdale nearest to him, which happened to be Lance, "ate de map and so we got lost." Lance grunted but attracted no attention from the dwarf-like men.

The King nodded and stroked his beard, "And, these horses, don't mind me saying, but they are rather odd. They're not horses you'd see everyday."

"Ah… yes sire." Remy had no idea how to reply the King.

"Do tell, young wanderer, where did you find these… horses?" The King continued his interrogation.

"Well, Gambit found them at… in… around." Remy finished lamely. The King noticed that some of the horses were coughing wildly. 

"I see. I have to say that these horses of yours have some very peculiar characteristics. Like that blue one. What breed is it?"

Remy's head worked as fast as it could, "Bronco Demona?"

The King raised an eyebrow, "Bronco Demona? I've never heard such a breed before in my life!"

"Well, it's a new breed, your majesty." He wasn't lying about this one either.

"And where is it from?"

Remy's brain stopped right there for a moment, "Erm…" He searched his brain as best he could and came up with an answer that got Kurt coughing madly, "Hell."

The King looked at Remy skeptically, "Hell?"

"Yea… Well no. Actually, yes. It was hell." Remy nodded gravely, "Yep, de gates of hell."

"I see…" The King leaned back in his throne, "And this. The winged one. Is it a Pegasus?"

Remy turned around and looked at Angel, who was ducking his head as low as his neck would allow. "Ah… yes?" Remy turned back and put on the most innocent face he had. His answers were getting more ridiculous as they continued. 

"Is that so? Do you know that the Pegasus herd can be only found on the mountains tops of Keilah?"

"Really?" Remy quickly corrected himself, "I mean, yes! Of course Gambit knows dat. You just got Gambit surprised for a moment dat you knew dat yourself!" He smiled innocently, "Your majesty." He quickly added.

"So, tell me about your journey up the mountains." The King kept on with the questioning.

Remy was getting tired of them, partially because his legs were aching themselves off, but mostly because he was running out of answers. "Gambit walked."

There was a moment of silence for a moment, and it was so quiet, a feather could drop on the sand and everyone would have heard it. "And?" The King finally said.

"And…" Remy looked around, "We walked more…"

The King nodded his head, beckoning Remy to go on.

"And we… walked to the top." Remy finished. He was seriously losing his touch.

"And what about all the obstacles that you should have faced? I've heard that there were three-headed lions, giant five-headed snakes and seven-headed dragons!"

"Yes! There were! Gambit managed to fight all of dem and win. The dragons, I mean, dragon, almost got me, let me tell you." The King raised a brow, and Remy shifted position uncomfortably before hurriedly adding, "And dere was a nine-headed ostrich around de top too. But Gambit managed to creep pass it when it's, ah… nine heads were in holes in de ground." He smiled, hoping that his story was convincing enough.

"Nine-headed ostrich?" The King asked quizzically. 

"Yep." Remy said, then mentally slapped himself on his head, "Actually, de truth is, what happen was de horse," He pointed at Warren, "Was on de ground with a broken wing and it appeared to have fallen out of de sky. So Gambit decided to go pick it up and help it get better." He finished with the most convincing face he could muster.

The King and all his men were now staring at him with blank expressions. Remy just looked down at his feet.

To everyone's surprise, the King burst out laughing. He laughed a laugh which most wise old men would laugh, and Remy just kneeled there and stared, "Umn… is there something Gambit's missing out on?"

"Sure is, son." The King laughed heartily, "My boy, you are the funniest fibber I've come across in my entire history!" 

"You knew I was lying all the time?" Remy asked in absolute amazement.

"Yup!" The King laughed. "There is no such place called Keilah. I just made it up!"

Remy rolled his eyes, "Well, you could have said so earlier and saved me the trouble of making the whole story up!" 

"Haha… young wanderer, you are spectacular." The King wiped tears from his eyes. "Now, would you mind telling me what really happened?"

So Remy did. About his journey and why he had started it off. The King listened intently all the while. 

"Clydesdales, are they?" 

"Yes, your majesty." 

"Ha. Bronco Demona indeed…" The King chuckled. Remy looked down at his feet bashfully.

"And these Clydesdales. They were formally mutants, you say?" 

"Yes. Mutants." Remy nodded.

"All because of Kar. Yes. I have heard of Kar. The great wizard. The evil wizard…" The King seemed to be deep in thought.

"Ah, Sire, may I ask if you have any idea of the wizard's whereabouts?" Remy asked hopefully.

The King sighed, "Sorry, boy, but I have no idea."

Remy looked down at the ground discouragingly. Then the King suddenly said, "Clydesdales… I think we may have one of your friends here."

Remy looked up in confusion, "Sire?"

"A Clydesdales, I mean." The King replied.

"A Clydesdale? Here?" 

"Yes."

"Where?" Remy was getting a little excited now.

"He's in one of the chambers. I'll show you to him later. We call him the Fire god."

"Pyro!" He heard one of the Clydesdales yelp.

The King and his guard looked at the Clydesdales in astonishment.

Remy turned around and back at the King, "Ah, did Gambit mention they could talk?"

End of Chapter 17

A/N: Sigh, sigh, and sigh some more…


	19. Daylight Hunting

A/N: Yay! I'm back, after such a long time. Hope no one think I'm dead or something. And guess what?? Nari had drawn some of the Clydesdales and they're so fantastic!!! I feel like announcing it to the entire world!! EVERYONE SHOULD HAVE TO SEE IT AND ADMIRE IT!!!! *hugs Nari* You're the best!!!!

Anyhooz, just a lil not to peepz reading this chappie. I don't think I'll be posting this as usual as often, so yes. Ah… not like anyones gonna miss it anywayz… XD Enjoy!

-- sylver rain

The Clydesdales 

Chapter 18: Daylight Hunting

"We have been living in the deserts for hundreds of years. Many generations have come and went. But there has always been a problem with food. It's not easy to find food around in the desert." The King related the Sand Kingdom's past to Remy and the Clydesdales as he and some men led the herd down to some chamber that kept Pyro – The Clydesdale of the Flames. Or like the sand people call it, the Fire god.

"My men had found the young fire stallion unconscious and dehydrated (A/N: Yes, dehydrated. XD), and they had brought him back to the Kingdom to take care of him. He has been taking care of our light problem, and as you will see, he is in a lot better condition now."

The King stopped outside a chamber, and turned in, followed by Remy and the herd. 

"This is it." 

The King stepped aside, his long cape flowing lightly after him, to reveal a Clydesdale resting and eating hay of some sort. 

The Clydesdale's coat was as gold as Pietro's was silver. He had eyes with bright red pupils and hooves that seemed to be gold-plated. But what was most magnificent of all was his hair- a line of crackling flames running down his back, with a long firey tail. 

"Pyro!" Quicksilver called out, appearing next to him in a second. 

St John looked up in bewilderment, "What the?" 

The King walked up smiling, "So you had the ability to talk all this while, huh?"

Pyro clamped his mouth shut, but common sense told him that the King obviously knew everything, so talking wasn't an issue anymore. "How the hell did you guys find me?" 

"Long story and a lot of luck." Remy walked up. 

After an introduction and narration of the past journey, Pyro sighed, "So we're gonna find this Kar guy and what, kill him?" 

"Hoping it will turn everything back to normal, yah." Remy said. 

"And you guys don't even know where he's situated?" Pyro asked them, a hint of disbelief in his voice. 

"No." Lance sighed. "But you're not backing out on us cuz of that, are ya?"

"No. Definitely not." Pyro said firmly, "But it's just gonna be… tough, ya know? We have no clue of where he is, how he looks like, and what kind of power he has. How are we suppose to succeed in this, mission?" 

"Well, no harm trying, huh?" Todd spoke up.

"I guess." Pyro shrugged. Then suddenly he seemed to snap out of something, "Bobby! I know where he is!" All eyes turned to him and waited for him to continue.

But Pyro didn't continue. In fact, he seemed to be staring off at nothing.

"Umn, so?" Evan impatiently asked on behalf of everyone else, "Where is he?"

Pyro blinked and looked around, "Huh? Oh, sorry. Spaced out for a moment there. He's been transported to… the Arctic! Yes. Oh wait, or was it Antarctica?" 

Everyone glared at him and St John could have sworn he was actually sweating- a great feat for a fire Clydesdale. "Ah… I'm not so sure now. Hey, don't lookit me like that! It's _your_ fault for coming so late! I had remembered it at the start of the whole thing but you guys took so long to come and I forgot."

"Hey, we came here by guessing and sheer luck. And we almost died coming to get you! Where's the gratitude?" Lance yelled.

"Well THANK YOU." St John yelled back.

Todd blinked a few times, "Ya know, he says it, yet he doesn't say it, get it?" 

The King interrupted before the earth and fire Clydesdales tore each other apart, "I think it's about time you all got some rest. I'm sure you'll be needing a lot of it for the rest of your journey, and you've had a long day."

"No kidding, yo."

"So you Clydesdales can stay here. There's plenty of hay and water for all. Gambit, Kanwa will lead you to a chamber for yourself. I hope you rest well for the night." The King went off with two other guards following. 

Remy was left with Kanwa, who only glared at him and stalked off. Remy took it as he was to follow the man and so he did. It was obvious the leader of the guards didn't really take a liking to him. 

Kanwa walked on forward at a such a pace that was meant to leave Gambit far behind and running after him, but Gambit had far longer legs compared to the shorter man, so he had no trouble keeping up. This only made Kanwa angrier.

Soon, the two reached an opening to another chamber, and Kanwa left Gambit there with a single grunt. Gambit shrugged and walked in, looking around at the room's décor. 

It was just like every other chamber in the kingdom - plain and empty, with a single square block of hay to substitute for a bed. The underground wasn't exactly all that warm and cozy, so the thin blanket covering the hay block was definitely going to come in handy. 

Remy flopped onto the bed, which was a little too short for him, and closed his eyes, sighing to himself, "It's gonna be a long night."

Remy woke up shivering the next morning. At least, he thought it was morning. It felt a little strange waking up to be greeted by what seemed like night, and unable to tell what the time was. He strolled out of his doorless chamber, and nearly bumped into a group of children hiding on the other side. They squealed and ran off, as if they had never been there. Remy shrugged and walked down the passage, not knowing where he was going, and not caring. He wandered aimlessly, passing chamber after chamber. 

What time was it anyway? His subconscious kept looking around for a window of some sort, to see if it was day or night. But none was to be found, and he felt like he was suffering from some major dose of jetlag. The air seemed to be getting colder, and the only time he ever felt warmth was when he passed by a fire torch that stuck out every interval. 

He thought he heard laughter, and spun around, but no one was there. He narrowed his eyes at the round corner, and turned back to continue walking. He suddenly turned around again, and he saw some children yelp and run back. He smiled. Tall people must seem very unusual to the folk here. He continued walking, ignoring the children, and he suddenly he came to the end of the tunnel, but an opening to a large chamber. 

Memory told him this was the way out, the chamber he was taken to after leaving the last he had seen of daylight. He walked into the chamber and looked around.

Everything was the same as he could recall seeing. The stairway, the trapdoor-like-opening, the many gears, poles and other contraptions used to connect the door and the rope used to open it. His finger moved to pull the rope. Then his brain kicked in, telling him that he had no idea of how to keep it open in order for him to walk out, and that he couldn't leave the Clydesdales behind. And especially that it was extremely silly to walk out and not say a formal goodbye to the King. But sunlight was needed desperately and Remy was starting to feel very sick. 

He turned around to walk back into passageway, only for his knees to bump into someone that was a lot shorter than him.

"Kanwa? Why, what are you doing here?"

Kanwa glared at him, "I was about to ask you the same question, stranger."

Remy shrugged, "Was just wandering around. Gambit going back now." He was about to walk pass Kanwa, but the pygmy guard moved so that he was in Gambit's way. 

Remy raised a brow.

"I don't think you tell the truth, stranger." Kanwa said in his husky voice. "You lie. You were wanting to get out, no?"

"Yes, but Gambit realize that he can't, so you can go away now." Remy was starting to get a little annoyed at the guard, but he tried to make sure he was showing none of it. 

"You can fool the King, but you cannot fool me. I know you're up to something. Just don't try anymore funny things, stranger. I'll be keeping an eye on you."

"Why, thank you Kanwa. Gambit feel so much better that someone is watching over me." He walked on through the long passage, until he finally came to what seemed to have been his room. It was very hard to tell which was his room, since they all looked the same. To his surprise, the King was there with his two guards behind.  

"Your majesty. Gambit didn't know you came." 

"Oh, I just wanted to wake you up. I had realized you have already waken. Did you get lost while exploring?"

"No. I just walked down, got to the entrance, and came back." Remy smiled. 

"I see. Seeking daylight, if I'm not wrong." The King smiled back.

"Haha. Gambit not too sure myself."

"Ah, well, young man. Are you feeling hungry? There isn't much though."

An idea squeezed itself from Remy's brain and out through his mouth, "You eat vultures?"

End of Chapter 18

A/N: Yes, remember how Evan killed all them vultures? Haha… no, I didn't plan for Evan to have killed vultures and given them to the Sand dwarves. God is giving me random ideas! XD

Hmm… vultures _are edible, aren't they? Oh well, let's just pretend that the sand folk eat vultures, huh?_

God Bless.


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